Choctaw County approves part-time rehires, raises and recruitment for road maintenance crew

Choctaw County Commissioners on Tuesday approved several personnel changes and recruitment steps for the county road department following recommendations from the County Engineer.

The commission voted to rehire retired foreman Kenneth Tyson as a part-time equipment operator at $21 an hour, contingent on confirmation from the RSA retirement system that the part-time hire will not require repayment or otherwise reduce his retirement benefits. Commissioners also approved raising the hourly rate for current part-time employee Prince Law to $21 per hour and authorized a pay increase for a county equipment operator (reclassified from $15.95 to $18.54 per hour) who the engineer said has taken on heavier duties.

The actions respond to staffing gaps and equipment needs described by the County Engineer during his report. He told the commission he conducted interviews for an equipment-operating position and recommended rehiring retired personnel to meet immediate needs while advertising for additional operators. “We had several folks interested, and I’d like to make some recommendations for some new hires,” the County Engineer said during the meeting.

The commission moved and approved the Tyson rehire (motion by Commissioner Mosley; second by Commissioner Cherry) and separately approved the pay adjustment for Prince Law (motion by Commissioner Cherry; second by Commissioner Jackson). The board also approved the engineer’s recommendation to increase the hourly rate for a current operator to $18.54 and made multiple recruitment motions: to advertise for one or more medium equipment operators and to advertise for one or more heavy equipment operators; both advertising motions passed unanimously.

Commissioners also voted to advertise for an assistant county engineer position and to proceed with in-house work for a planned construction sale while acknowledging limits on in-house capacity. The engineer told commissioners that some larger paving or patching work will still require outside contractors: “We cannot do it with the way we do it in house,” he said, describing planned construction tied to a recent sale.

Separately, the commission approved a motion to give a county maintenance employee, Bart Thompson, a $1-per-hour raise after commissioners described sustained repair and maintenance work beyond his current duties (motion by Commissioner Lehi; second by Commissioner Jackson).

The County Engineer also briefed commissioners on equipment problems and replacement considerations. He reported a diagnosed internal valve blockage in a tar/tack truck and said he would seek repair quotes. He asked commissioners to consider budgeting for a Duramax two-person trailer-mounted pothole patching machine for a future budget; commissioners directed staff to explore financing options and possible surplus-equipment sales to fund the purchase.

The engineer recommended that the Tyson rehire be contingent on RSA review to ensure the rehired retired employee would not be required to repay retirement benefits. Commissioners explicitly recorded that contingency in the motion approving Tyson’s part-time rehire.

Votes at a glance from this discussion: Tyson rehire at $21/hour (approved, motion by Commissioner Mosley; second Commissioner Cherry); Prince Law pay increase to $21/hour (approved, motion by Commissioner Cherry; second Commissioner Jackson); pay increase for equipment operator to $18.54/hour (approved); advertise for one or more medium equipment operators (approved); advertise for one or more heavy equipment operators (approved); advertise for assistant county engineer (approved); $1/hour raise for Bart Thompson (approved, motion by Commissioner Lehi; second Commissioner Jackson).

Commissioners and the engineer discussed budget impacts and benefit rates. The engineer said part-time hires avoid vacation, sick and holiday pay, lowering overhead; commissioners noted overall benefit-cost multipliers for full-time staff and asked that budget effects be tracked during the next budget cycle.

The County Engineer closed by asking for direction on next steps for equipment repair quotes and for budgeting the proposed Duramax machine; commissioners directed staff to follow up and bring cost and funding options back to the commission.