Housing authority studies proposed wage increases
The Fayette County Housing Authority board of directors held a work session Monday regarding a wage comparability study that suggests raising the salaries of 20 employees by a combined $40,000 to achieve parity. The study was part of a three-pronged package of work by Peter R. Johnson and Co. of West Chester, which also helped the authority develop more specific job descriptions and a more detailed employee evaluation system.
Many of the employees slated for equity pay increases under the Johnson plan work for the authority’s Services to Senior Citizens Program, where workers have historically been paid less than their counterparts in the larger, federally subsidized housing operation.
The proposed salary increases for four housing authority employees in the overtime-exempt category range from $3,545 to $8,257. However, the two employees at the end of that spectrum currently earn only $26,000 and $15,589, respectively.
The proposed salary increases for 16 housing authority employees in the category covering jobs that qualify for overtime pay range from $57 to $2,518.
The study also establishes pay ranges for various levels of job categories, based on Johnson’s analysis of other salary sources in the county and region. Johnson, who briefed the board on his work, said his firm’s confidential client files were one of the salary sources in the mix.
Overall, Johnson said his analysis showed that the authority is paying a competitive wage in most instances. But it also found some areas where improvement is needed, he noted.
“I can confidently say that your payroll, in the aggregate, is reasonable, fair and competitive,” said Johnson. But he added that to achieve maximum equilibrium, the salaries of some lower-paid people need to be increased.
Conversely, the Johnson study flagged three jobs – the computer systems analyst, the fixed asset specialist and one of the authority’s housing inspectors – that warrant red-lining because the current pay is above the comparability maximum.
Johnson said it could take a year or two, or even more, of pay freezes for those three employees to be brought in line to the pay range recommended by the study.
Executive Director Thomas L. Harkless noted that many, if not most, of the authority’s employees are already paid within the pay ranges recommended by Johnson, which means they will be unaffected by implementation of the study.
Although Harkless recommended that the board approve the study at its regular meeting on Friday, he said the board has a free hand in determining when to put the recommended salary increases into effect.
“It’s not written in stone that it has to be (for) next pay period. You could wait until Jan. 1 if you wanted to,” said Harkless, who recommended that the increases take effect starting Oct. 14. He said that all of the authority’s programs, including Services to Senior Citizens, have operating reserves that could be tapped to fund the increases.
Harkless also said that budget transfers could fund the increases. He added that the authority has been in contact with the Southwestern Pennsylvania Area Agency on Aging and the Fayette County Human Resources Department regarding ways to find additional money, and has met with a positive response on both fronts.
Board member Beverly Beal said that she’d like to see a more specific listing of the proposed salary increases, one that clearly shows the name of the employee, the position, and that employee’s current and proposed salary level.
“What I want to see is the names, what they are making now and what they will be making,” said Beal.
Harkless said that information will be formatted per Beal’s request and will be mailed to board members by Wednesday, so they have it in hand prior to Friday’s meeting.
Board member the Rev. Howard E. Dantzler Sr. said that while Johnson’s work “looks nice and sounds good,” he doesn’t necessarily like the fact that some employees will be getting far larger equity increases than others.
Board Chairman Kenneth L. Johnson informed Dantzler that such disparity will exist because one purpose of the study was to identify underpaid employees and bring them up to speed, based on the type of work they are currently performing.
Harkless said he’d like the board to “tweak” the study to alleviate any concerns it has, so the document and its salary ranges can be approved Friday. Peter Johnson said the study was a “joint venture” between his firm and the authority staff, which involved a series of meetings that culminated with a “performance appraisal focus group” that did not include Harkless.
Board member Nancy Sutton also attended the work session. Board member Angela M. Zimmerlink, the only board member who is not retired, did not attend.