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April 17, 1997
Hagerstown, Maryland
A Special Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners of Washington County,
Maryland, was called to order at 8:00 a.m. by the President, Gregory I. Snook,
with the following members present: Vice President John S. Shank, and
Commissioners R. Lee Downey and James R. Wade.
APPROVAL TO SUBMIT GRANT APPLICATION - STATES ATTORNEYS OFFICE
Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Downey, to approve the
submission of a grant application for State funding in the amount of $28,000
to permit the States Attorneys Office to hire an additional Victim/Witness
Liaison, Grade 5, Step A. Unanimously approved.
WORKSHOP - CLASSIFICATION & COMPENSATION STUDY
The Commissioners met with Robert Hendricks, President of Hendricks &
Associates, Inc., to present the Classification and Compensation Study his
company performed for Washington County.. Mr. Hendricks stated that the
objective of the study was to ensure that County employees are appropriately
titled and graded in relationship to their job duties, that salaries paid are
at levels competitive with prevailing practices of other local governments and
general industry, and that employees are motivated to meet and exceed
Washington Countys goals. He then explained the approach and tasks used to
review the job classifications.
Mr. Hendricks outlined the following five principal recommendations of the
study:
1. Reclassification of nearly one-half of all County workers and
introduction of an office associate class series.
2. Design an expanded 20-grade structure to consolidate the Countys six
non-union and two union pay schedules.
3. Develop a competitive and affordable salary range that provides the
workforce with additional opportunities for advancement based on performance.
4. Adopt an open range pay plan where the concept of
salary/midpoint would replace the current step system.
5. Establish a 40-hour week for all County employees.
Mr. Hendricks stated that the immediate cost to implement the salary ranges is
approximately $108,000 after the salaries have been adjusted to a 40-hour work
week. Alan Davis, Director of Human Resources, recommended that the
Commissioners consider 4% of the FY 1998 payroll as the basis for adjustment.
Mr. Hendricks explained how the salary/midpoint system would work, and how
the merit increase formula as it relates to the performance evaluation plan.
Mr. Davis stated that, if this plan is adopted, training sessions will be
scheduled to familiarize employees with the new system.
The Commissioners discussed the findings and asked how they should proceed to
implement the new system. Mr. Davis stated that an executive summary would be
distributed to all employees along with a summary of the classifications. He
indicated that employees would get letters notifying them of their
classifications. Mr. Davis stated that a process would also be established to
hear any appeals. The Commissioners agreed to take the Compensation and
Classification Study under consideration at this time. They agreed to
schedule time on the April 28 agenda to allow Commissioner Bowers time to
review the study and its recommendations.
ADJOURNMENT
Motion made by Commissioner Wade, seconded by Shank, to adjourn at 9:50 a.m.
Unanimously approved.