Pender County HR reports employee survey: pay, benefits and training top concerns

Human Resources Director Kim Bennett presented results of a January 2025 county employee survey at the April 22 Pender County Commission meeting, reporting that compensation, benefits and career development were the top employee concerns.

Bennett told commissioners that 99 employees completed the survey (about one‑third of the county’s workforce) and that nearly 50% said their pay reflected their responsibilities “well” or “very well.” She said 88% were satisfied with the county’s benefits package and that 76% prefer email as the primary channel for internal communications.

On career development, Bennett reported that 44% of respondents said they consistently receive effective training, with 42% answering “sometimes” and 15% saying they do not get enough training. She described new and ongoing HR initiatives intended to address concerns: a countywide wellness incentive and Health Risk Assessments (more than 200 employees participated last year), a proposed compensation review plan focused on positions with high turnover, a new executive leadership program and more frequent “lunch and learn” events and supervisor training.

Commissioners asked how many employees work remotely and whether targeted surveys could be run for specific departments. Bennett said telecommuting is used primarily as a flexible schedule option for some departments and that some DSS caseworkers telecommute for space reasons; she said the county will require staff to be in new buildings when those facilities open. When asked how HR would reach the roughly 29% of employees who reported they would not go to HR with concerns, Bennett said HR is pushing in‑person engagement (coffee and kudos events) and would like to increase staffing so HR could do proactive outreach to departments.

Commissioners and staff discussed response rates; Bennett said 99 responses represent under 50% of total employees (the county employs roughly 500 full‑time and about 300 part‑time workers). She proposed repeating the same survey next year to track progress and listed additional recruitment and retention efforts, including revised bereavement policy, changes to longevity pay and attendance at job fairs.

Bennett said HR maintains an open‑door policy and a confidential tip line and is exploring enhanced employee assistance program resources.

Commissioners asked HR to consider regular in‑department visits and additional HR staffing; Vice Chair Springer offered to meet with HR leadership to discuss engagement options.

Bennett closed by offering to provide the full open‑ended responses to commissioners on request and noted that HR will continue training and engagement activities into 2025.