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Sheriff urges commissioners to involve employees on health-insurance choices and consider cost-of-living increases
Summary
The sheriff and public-safety staff urged the commission to involve employees in decisions about switching health insurers and to consider cost-of-living adjustments and wage competitiveness to retain staff.
A representative from the sheriff’s office addressed the commission at length about employee benefits, wages and the process used to consider changing health insurers.
Speaking as a voice for employees, the sheriff said county employees were surprised by an unannounced discussion about switching from Blue Cross Blue Shield to another insurer and urged earlier engagement with employees. The speaker said the EMS and public-safety workforce is close to being competitive on wages but cautioned that increases in benefit costs could erode gains; he recommended presenting employees with options and a clear cost trade-off so staff can express preferences.
The sheriff suggested negotiating with current and competing insurers, involving employees in the decision, and considering modest cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) to prevent pay stagnation and turnover. He emphasized that employees receive varying benefits across departments and urged commissioners to solicit employee input by survey or a vote rather than having a small group make final decisions. The speaker offered to assist at the negotiation table and to work with commissioners on communication to employees, including paper notices for staff without county email accounts.
Commissioners acknowledged the comments and asked staff to consider improved employee communication and negotiation strategies; no formal action was taken during public comment.
