Dunn County staff propose quarterly performance reviews and tie 2026 pay increases to October ratings

County staff presented a proposal July 9 to change how Dunn County evaluates employees and how much they are paid, recommending quarterly manager-employee check-ins, a simpler three-level performance rating, and replacing the current 11-step pay system with minimum/maximum pay grades. The countys presentation explained the October check-in would determine increases for the following year, with a meeting-expectations rating proposed to yield roughly a 2.75% base-pay increase and an exceeds-expectations rating an additional roughly 0.5% on top of that; employees rated as needing improvement would not receive a base increase.

County staff said the proposal is intended to provide more frequent feedback, address employee-survey responses that managers and evaluations do not produce regular communication, and give managers flexibility to apply smaller or larger increases than the fixed step previously required. "We feel that it will provide more regular and ongoing feedback and more fostering that relationship between managers and their employees," a county staff member said during the presentation.

The change would remove the fixed 11-step progression that…