Vigo County council hears Baker Tilly pay-study options, hears cost estimates and next steps

Vigo County Council convened a special, informational meeting to receive a presentation from Baker Tilly on a countywide compensation study that mapped internal job evaluations against market pay and outlined implementation scenarios and estimated recurring costs.

The presentation, delivered remotely by Jada Kent, practice leader for Baker Tilly’s compensation consulting group, explained the study’s methodology: employee position-analysis questionnaires (PAQs), supervisor review, SAFE (systematic analysis and factor evaluation) job scoring across nine compensable factors, and a market assessment using peer organizations adjusted for local cost-of-labor differences. Kent said the market data were pulled in April and that the firm applied Economic Research Institute and Bureau of Labor Statistics sources to create adjusted market midpoints.

Why it matters: the council must decide whether to adopt new pay plans and grade assignments and how to implement them in the budget cycle. Kent recommended approving the proposed pay structures, adopting grade assignments, and establishing an appeals process and ongoing maintenance so pay plans stay aligned with market conditions.

Key findings and options

Kent said the study included roughly 153 benchmark positions; nine benchmarks had insufficient matches, leaving market values for about 94% of benchmarks. The county’s positions were mapped into three pay structures (general, public safety, sheriff). For the general plan, Kent cited about 203 positions and said 32 employees in that plan currently fall below the proposed new minimum.

Baker Tilly outlined four implementation scenarios and provided recurring-cost estimates based on April market data: a baseline (move employees below the new minimum up to minimum) that Baker Tilly cited at about $83,000; a minimum-or-2%-floor scenario at about $501,000; a pay-compression/time-in-range adjustment estimated near $1.2 million; and moving every employee to the midpoint (market) at roughly $1.5 million. Kent emphasized these figures are based on April market data and recommended the council consider 'aging' the market data before final adoption because the market is perishable.

Council questions and clarifications

Council members pressed Baker Tilly on frequency of updates and who should do them. Kent said annual market reviews tied to budget cycles are common, but market volatility sometimes requires midyear checks; Baker Tilly can do recurring or ad-hoc updates, or HR can perform the work in-house.

Budget committee member Vicky Wagner asked when the study started; Kent said on-site project work began about a year earlier and the market pull was in April. County Auditor Jim Bramble asked whether the market comparison reflected recent pay raises; Kent and council members clarified the market study used April data while the county’s current wage comparisons reflect more recent wages, so aging the market data would raise implementation costs.

Kent described a post-adoption appeals process where employees would submit a formal request form to HR; Baker Tilly would evaluate the position (not the person) and recommend whether a grade change or other adjustment is warranted. Final deliverables would include updated job descriptions and HR training; Baker Tilly also offered ongoing implementation support.

Next steps and meeting outcome

No formal decisions were taken during the special meeting. Council President Todd said he aims to create a subcommittee to work with Baker Tilly and department heads and noted that decisions about which implementation option to adopt must be made before the county’s next budget cycle. At the close of the session, Council member Vicky Wagner moved to adjourn; the council took a voice vote and the meeting was adjourned.

Selected direct quotes

"This presentation is going to walk through, at a high level, our methodology for conducting the study and kind of the end result of that study in terms of how it would look to move forward with implementation," said Jada Kent, Baker Tilly. "The market data was pulled in April ... it may be appropriate to age the data to account for the time that's passed."

"Right now, we are 32 people below our current salary compared to April 22," Council President Todd said when discussing how many employees would be affected under certain options.

"You could do it that way," Kent said when asked whether an implementation could be made retroactive and paid as a lump-sum, noting Baker Tilly can calculate retroactive costs.

Votes at a glance

- Motion: "Move to adjourn the meeting." Mover: Vicky Wagner. Outcome: approved by voice vote; at least one 'aye' recorded and chair declared adjournment.

Sources and limitations

All figures and recommendations in this article come from Baker Tilly’s presentation to the Vigo County Council and the council’s on-record questions. Cost figures were presented as estimates based on April market data; Baker Tilly and council members repeatedly noted the data may need to be aged and that final implementation costs would depend on council choices, any aging applied to the market data, and the council's implementation timeline.

What’s next

Todd said he plans to propose a subcommittee to work with Baker Tilly and department heads ahead of the next budget cycle; council members signaled options for phased implementation and requested the report and slides from Baker Tilly for further review.