2023-08-04 Salary Commission Minutes

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Salary Commission August 4, 2023 The County Charter mandates that you folks are the ones that outline the salaries of these department heads. So, when we try to motivate and keep our chiefs—as you folks know, we both departments, the fire department and the police department just went through hiring within the last 24 months. And that's because our current department heads—or the retiring police chief and fire chief—both retired out. Based, in no small part, on salaries. So, our goal—our goal, here, today, is to convey to this Salary Commission—on behalf of the police commission that we are very thrilled with the department heads and that we feel that due compensation, that brings it up to market value—that brings these positions to be paid what these positions are paid not only across the State but as an industry standard across the nation. The—when I think you heard me say a performance-based increase, what the message I was trying to convey to you folks, which I think you guys were talking about when I joined in late and I apologize for my tardinessI had another call. Both departments have collective bargaining units, which are the unions that provide salaries for everybody in the department. All the management that is above that collective bargaining unit had negotiated to where—if the lowest paid police officer or firefighter gets a raise, everybody above them goes up incremental—with the exception, now, the individuals that are under our purview under the Salary Commission purview—and that is the chief and the deputy chief. So, right now, we have subordinates that are making significantly more money than the chief and the deputy chief. Our assistant chiefs make more money. Our majors make more money. Currently, there are some captains that are equitable or possibly make more money with the overtime. And so, what exposed this to us and made it, kind of, a critical issue was when our current chief that we just hired was doing a fantastic job trying to recruit a deputy chief—could not do that withI should say hand-strung—with selecting who that individual wanted because he would have to go down the rank structure in order to provide a pay increase. Because nobody wants to take a pay decrease to take that position and assume more responsibilities. So, we're at this point now where the captain of the ship is making less money than the chief cook. And that's our responsibility. So, I just I think we're all on the right track. I think we're saying the right things. It just, for us, we just need to collectively come together—understand that we need to do the right thing, and execute on their salary increase. And I don't—and I know for a fact we're all going to be doing this again very shortly. MS. GREENBAUM: Commissioner Bertsch, I did have a question for you. So, my understanding is, if we don't make any changes and we don't make an adequate increase, the quality of the services that (inaudible) or the quality of the individuals that would walk into these positions, will start to dwindle and indirectly affect the overall cost to the community. MR. BERTSCH: I agree—and not—it will cost us more money because the reality of it is, is we do—we are very, very fortunate. Hawaii is a community of individuals as you folks are sitting Page 17