Will County committee flags longevity-pay costs in Chapter 36 personnel ordinance

Members of the Will County Executive Committee flagged longevity-pay provisions and budgetary impacts while considering an ordinance amending Chapter 36 (personnel regulations) of the Will County Code.

Committee member Mr. Richmond raised concerns that the longevity language and related payments, when aggregated in the county budget, total “about 3 quarters of a million dollars annually” and asked the committee to review whether the longevity structure remains appropriate.

Richmond said the contract-related $200 top‑step payment and the smaller longevity schedule included in the ordinance are distinct. Phil (identified in the meeting as a lawyer) explained the ordinance language at issue covers the smaller longevity schedule — a $2-per-month start after three years that can reach a maximum of $40 per month — and not the separate $200 top-step payments that appear in collective bargaining contracts and the county budget. Phil said the $2-per-month provision is present in both the ordinance and some contracts and noted the larger $200 payments originated during prior step-compression adjustments and persist in contracts but are not part of section 36.018’s wording.

Members asked whether the longevity language applies to union and nonunion employees and how the items appear in the budget. Committee members suggested the board could examine whether the three-year trigger for the $2-per-month schedule is still appropriate or whether the longevity schedule should be reviewed in a separate committee before changing the ordinance. One member proposed discussing the matter in a committee with staff analysis of the aggregate budgetary effect; the motion to move forward with the ordinance passed, and members said they would schedule further review of longevity pay and collective-bargaining impacts in a future committee meeting.