2025-09-24 Salary Commission Minutes

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Salary Commission September 24, 2025 So, it really, I think, requires this body to decide how you want to proceed, as a whole. And in order to adopt any changes, such as are being proposed here—we’re going to need a two-thirds vote of this membership. So, I think it’s all relevant and I think, ultimately, you need to know how is it that you want to proceed as a body? Do you find it necessary to carve out any of the ones that may or may not have changes? I know that HR has already indicated to Commissioner Namahoe that she could provide us that information about possible inversions. So, if you want that, then I guess I caution you to keep pushing forward right now with adopting Findings that would, theoretically, cover all of the departments—if you’re not going to have had time to see what those potential inversion situations are. So, in fairness, right, what we do—what this body does is super important. So, I want to make sure you have all the necessary facts and information to ensure that you’re comfortable adopting or continuing to propose the potential adoption of these Findings, ‘cause right now it sounds like you don’t necessarily have all of that information. So, yeah. CHR. PAVAO: I think that—department, definitely, is inversion because most of the collective st bargaining units got pay raises July 1 and the appointing and elected officials didn’t—so, there’s already some level of inversion. Ask Chief Todd—if you have an opinion about removing the Fire and the Police Chief’s positions from this, until we get the findings of the collective bargaining? MR. TODD: So, I understand you guys want to proceed. Why not just align it with whatever that organizations primary bargaining unit is, so if they primarily recognize HGEA—or 51% of the employees in an organizational unit or department or HGEA—then align—leave directors salary increases with the same for the primary unit represented. Basically, what’s good for the goose is good for the gander. You don’t want to end up with an inversion. So, you just say, “All right, HFFA is the primary one for Fire”—so it aligns with the director or the Fire Chief aligns with whatever HFFA gets. And then you don’t have to set a designated number. It’s just—we’re saying we want to maintain, basically, a same alignment, right—and then that way you’re not worried about when the arbitration ends or how it finalizes and everything else. And then, for example, if Fire ends up taking another two years or something like—they can always be back dated at some other point in the future. But, yeah, I believe we’re scheduled for December, so it’ll probably take a few months after that, but I’m not particularly worried—you guys do pay me very well. Thank you very much. I appreciate you very much. With that said, I put my letter in because I think from the County’s perspective, our goal should be to have the best quality of leadership, if we’re looking to produce the best government. And then, vice-versa, if we want to offer middling salaries, we’ll get middling leaders running our departments and a government that does a middling job. So, that’s my opinion. Page 10