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Henderson council approves police pay adjustments to address 10-officer shortfall
Summary
On March 8, 2021 the Henderson City Council unanimously approved Resolution 21-22 to raise police pay grades and add longevity and assignment incentives, a package city staff said would help recruit and retain officers and take effect with the March 18 pay period.
HENDERSON, N.C. — The Henderson City Council on March 8 unanimously approved a package of pay adjustments for the Henderson Police Department designed to stem turnover and improve recruiting, City officials said.
City Manager Edward Blackmon introduced the work-session item and Police Chief Marcus Barrow outlined the proposal, which the council approved by an 8-0 vote after brief discussion. The plan raises base pay for officer grades, narrows some promotion differentials, creates a small longevity scale, adds a career-length incentive and offers a 2% Special Response Team (SRT) incentive and on-call compensation aligned with peer agencies. Council Member Melissa Elliott moved approval of Resolution 21-22; Council Member D. Michael Rainey seconded it and the motion carried unanimously.
Why it matters: Chief Barrow told the council the department is “currently ten (10) short” and has 42 officers on staff, compared with an allocation of 58 when he began in 1988. The city said the changes are intended to reduce pay compression and make Henderson more competitive with nearby agencies, the sheriff’s office and the state highway patrol.
What was proposed: City staff presented a detailed chart of grade changes. Among the items discussed were: raising hiring pay for Police Officer I to about $41,500 (the minutes record two nearby figures, $41,466 and $41,666); reducing the promotion differential between Senior Police Officer and Sergeant from 15% to 10%; increasing the pay differential between lieutenant and captain to address overtime and exempt/nonexempt pay compression; adding longevity pay at 0.25% per year up to 5% and a career-law-enforcement longevity incentive at 0.25% per year up to 2.5%; a 2% SRT incentive for assigned members; and moving to on-call compensation levels comparable to other agencies. The minutes include a full pay-grade chart presented by staff.
Cost and timing: Chief Barrow said the plan, if implemented with the March 18, 2021 pay period, would cost no more than $60,000 for the remainder of FY 2020-21 (seven pay periods) and about $107,000 in the FY 2021-22 budget once vacancies are filled. Council and staff discussed whether longevity changes should be deferred until citywide longevity and cost-of-living adjustments are further studied.
Council response: Council members praised the effort to address retention and asked about budget impacts. Council Member William Burnette raised concerns that narrowing promotional differentials might discourage promotion; staff said the changes were designed to prevent senior officers from earning more than sergeants and to reduce compression. Council Member Sara M. Coffey emphasized the need to bring all staff salaries into a competitive posture. Council Member Elliott suggested the chief’s position also be reviewed; the City Manager said he would address that separately.
Next steps: The council approved the resolution and staff indicated payroll changes would be made effective in the March 18 pay period. The city will incorporate the FY 2021-22 costs into the upcoming budget process.
Provenance: The discussion and vote are recorded in the meeting minutes beginning at SEG 033 and concluding at SEG 067.
