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Grants Pass council hears plan for 2026 non‑bargaining pay study; consultant proposes $27,500 contract and four‑month timeline
Summary
At a June 15 workshop, Lori Messer of Logic Compensation Group outlined a proposed 2026 compensation survey for Grants Pass non‑bargaining positions, recommending at least five southern Oregon comparators, a not‑to‑exceed fee of $27,500, and a core study window of about four months (June–October).
Lori Messer, managing director of Logic Compensation Group, told the Grants Pass City Council on June 15 that her firm will conduct the city's 2026 non‑bargaining compensation survey and deliver findings and implementation options for council consideration. “We're thrilled to have been selected to do the city's 2026 non‑bargaining compensation survey,” Messer said in opening remarks.
Messer described the firm as a 100% woman‑owned consultant that works exclusively with public sector clients and said senior consultants will perform the work rather than junior staff. She said the study will benchmark roughly 40 non‑bargaining positions against “a minimum of five southern Oregon comparators” and recommended the council consider adding comparators to strengthen statistical reliability.
The firm proposed a four‑phase approach: study initiation, a custom market survey and analysis, a report with recommendations and implementation options, and optional quarterly check‑ins for one year after study completion. Messer said the core study would run about four months, with survey and analysis work from late June through September and a final report in the fall.
On fees, Messer told council the engagement would be a not‑to‑exceed fixed price of $27,500 broken down by phase: $2,500 for initiation, $20,000 for market survey and analysis, and $5,000 for the final report and recommendations. She noted that adding comparator organizations generally costs about $1,000 each because of additional outreach and analysis, and that optional on‑site visits are typically billed at up to $1,500 per day.
Council members asked how the study would be managed and whether HR could serve as the city's project contact. Messer confirmed the HR specialist Tony will be the primary contact for day‑to‑day data collection, while the city manager would usually be involved for decisioning before council presentation. Messer also explained the market specifications document she prepares before survey launch, which lays out benchmark jobs, comparator organizations, target market percentile (for example, median plus a chosen percent), and whether the analysis will be based on salaries or range data.
On comparator selection, Messer said typical criteria are proximity, organizational size, budget and services, and recommended applying geographic differentials to normalize pay when comparators are drawn from a broader area. Several council members asked about using median household income or other socio‑economic metrics to pick comparators; Messer said those factors can be considered but are not the standard practice because they do not always reflect the labor market for public‑sector jobs.
Next steps, Messer said, include the city approving market specifications and confirming benchmark jobs and comparators before the survey is sent. The council had no formal vote on the consultant agreement at the workshop; Messer said the agreement has been executed and staff will begin the phase‑one kickoff with city staff to confirm goals and schedule.
The city's staff contact for the project will be the HR specialist Tony, and staff said they will return to council with the finalized market specifications and any requests to expand the comparator pool.
