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Committee approves adjusted part-time, temporary and seasonal wages after debate over competitiveness
Summary
The Human Resources Committee approved revised part-time, temporary and seasonal wage rates, adopting Marathon County figures as a starting point. Committee members debated whether the proposed rates are sufficient to attract applicants and whether they constitute a living wage for some positions.
The Wausau Human Resources Committee on Feb. 10 approved an adjustment to part-time, temporary and seasonal wage rates after hearing from department representatives who said positions have been difficult to fill.
Human Resources staff said departments reported unfilled seasonal roles and that staff reached out to neighboring municipalities and Marathon County to benchmark wages. “We thought, let's try that number and then see where we end up if we can get more candidates,” an HR staff member said about using county rates as a starting point.
Alder Gisselman questioned the proposed rates’ competitiveness and sufficiency, particularly for community service officers and seasonal technical positions. “I think even these numbers really reflect a meager wage for some of the people that we really do need,” Gisselman said, adding concerns that the rates are below a living wage even for part-time roles.
Other committee members responded that many seasonal roles are held by students or short-term hires and that the experience gained in city roles can be valuable on a resume. One committee member said the city should try the county rates and return if hiring problems persist.
Human Resources staff told the committee some rates were drawn from Marathon County’s summer-help wages and that departments will monitor hiring; if shortages continue, staff can return to the committee with proposed changes. The motion to approve the adjusted rates passed unanimously.
The committee asked HR to provide the detailed municipal comparisons used for benchmarking and to report back if difficulty filling positions persists.
