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County proposes tying bilingual pay to base salary, expanding eligibility
Summary
County HR and OEICE proposed replacing the flat bilingual stipend with a percentage-based payment (proposed 5% of base pay with a $75 floor), expanding eligibility to variable-hour employees, and aligning the policy with equity objectives after extensive staff engagement.
Lisa Takage (HR) and Ashley Horn (policy manager, OEICE) presented a proposed update to the county's bilingual-pay policy, moving from a fixed per-pay-period stipend to a percentage-of-pay model and expanding eligibility.
The proposal would pay bilingual-designated positions 5% of base salary with a $75 minimum when the percentage would be lower. Staff said they ran reports showing current bilingual-pay recipients would receive higher pay under a 5% approach and that the change is intended to keep compensation competitive and responsive to inflation.
The presenters said the policy expansion reflects extensive engagement: 185 bilingual staff from 17 departments participated in crosswalks and feedback sessions, and multiple listening sessions were held with staff and managers. The update also adds variable-hour employees to eligibility and aligns the policy with the board's 2020 equity resolution and federal language-access obligations.
Commissioners asked about multilingual pay beyond two languages, the inclusion of American Sign Language (ASL), testing thresholds (currently a 20% use threshold), and how increases tied to salary would interact with future COLAs. Staff said the policy is iterative and committed to follow-up work (job-description reviews, supervisor training, and clarifications on ASL and thresholds) prior to final adoption; the item is scheduled for the Dec. 17 consent agenda or, after a Dec. 19 code change, adoption by the county administrator.
Provenance: HR/OEICE presentation and commissioner Q&A at work session.
