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Contractor explains Harney County classification and compensation study, citing Equal Pay Act compliance
Summary
A contractor from the Lane Council of Governments explained Harney County’s internal equity and market salary survey, saying the process evaluates jobs (not employees), aligns pay with Oregon’s Equal Pay Act, and may produce grade placements and policy recommendations by late June or early July.
A contractor working through Lane Council of Governments briefed Harney County Court on June 17 about the county’s classification and compensation study, emphasizing that the review evaluates jobs rather than individuals and will support compliance with Oregon’s Equal Pay Act.
Ruth McKenna, the contractor, said the work includes an internal equity analysis using updated job descriptions and an external market survey of comparable Oregon counties. “We’re evaluating the job using objective criteria and a standardized methodology,” McKenna said, noting the work does not assess employee performance or reorganize departments.
McKenna described the two components of the study: an internal rubric that scores job factors to determine grade placement, and a market analysis that surveys wage data among comparable counties. The intersection of those results will determine whether positions require salary adjustments; in some cases, an employee’s salary might be placed on a different grade and the employee’s pay could be frozen until the range catches up.
County officials asked whether the county could retain the methodology internally. McKenna said the county can be trained to perform the internal scoring or can continue to rely on LGPS for quality‑control and final grading. She estimated as much of the study as possible would be completed by the end of June, with final items possibly stretching into July.
Why it matters: The classification and compensation work establishes consistent, documented pay practices that affect recruitment, retention and legal compliance under state equal‑pay laws. County leaders said the current grade schedules have been manipulated without documentation and that a reset will improve transparency.
Next steps: McKenna will finalize the internal and market analyses and provide policy recommendations; county HR will use the results to set procedures for future job grading and pay decisions.
