LaSalle County committee approves two nursing-home positions to cover rising census and transport needs

LaSalle County’s Salary and Labor Committee approved two new positions for the county nursing home at its June 25 meeting: a full-time staffing coordinator at $20.50 per hour (nonunion, with benefits) and a part-time resident transport driver at $25 per hour (20–25 hours per week, no benefits).

The additions come after a longtime employee who had been covering multiple roles announced she will leave in July. Committee Chair Steve Aubrey opened the item and asked for committee consideration; a staff presenter identified in the transcript as Dina described the proposed changes, saying, “we have agreed to separate the 3 positions.”

The nursing-home presenter said the psychosocial coordinator role has been filled as a full-time union position and that the remaining duties — resident transport and staffing coordination — should be split into two roles. “The resident transport driver would be a part time position, 20 to 25 hours a week, no benefits,” Dina said. On the staffing coordinator, she said the county could fund the position from an unused benefits-liaison salary line and budget the positions formally in the fiscal-year 2026 budget: “If both approved, I will then put them both in my budget for next year.”

Committee members raised questions about who currently performs scheduling and whether the director of nurses would absorb the work. Dina said census at the facility has grown from roughly the high 30s to 62 residents, and that the director of nurses would not have time to manage staffing in addition to existing duties. She also cited training and certification needs for the transport role, noting safety and liability concerns for longer trips to Peoria or Rockford.

Members discussed whether to compare the county’s in-house driver to using NCAT public transit for medical trips. Dina said NCAT’s scheduling and pickup rules can leave residents waiting while staff are not present: “we wouldn’t be using NCAT even for in town because of that. It puts too much restrictions and leaves our residents by themselves somewhere possibly for 6 hours.” One committee member offered to contact NCAT to explore whether scheduling adjustments were possible.

On funding, the presenter and committee members said the salary line for a benefits liaison remains in the current payroll spreadsheet and is available to fund the staffing coordinator; a committee speaker stated that about $43,000 for that line is currently unspent. The transcript records committee discussion that if the benefits-liaison line remains in future budgets, the county’s payroll would increase, but as presented the staffing coordinator could be funded from the current year’s unused allocation.

Formal action: the committee voted to approve the positions. The motion to approve the part-time medical transport driver (at $25/hour, approximately up to 25 hours weekly) was moved and seconded (Tina — first; James — second) and approved by voice vote; the staffing coordinator position (full time, $20.50/hour, nonunion, with benefits) was likewise approved by committee voice vote. The transcript records voice approval but does not include a recorded roll-call tally for those votes.

The presenter and members agreed to monitor how duties change and to revisit the benefits-liaison need during FY2026 budget planning. The committee also suggested the nursing-home administrator and finance staff meet to confirm whether the benefits-liaison duties remain necessary before finalizing the FY2026 payroll structure.

The action will be reflected in next year’s budget materials and the nursing-home staffing plan for FY2026.