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Reaction mixed on pay raises |
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Wednesday, 28 January 2009 |
Members of the Bryant City Council reacted with mixed emotions during a Monday meeting after residents requested them to reconsider significant raises for elected officials.
The council voted on three ordinances that would increase the mayor’s salary from $58,377 to $76,700; the city clerk’s salary from $30,000 to $46,600; and the salary for aldermen from $4,800 to $8,600.
The vote on the first reading of the ordinance for the city clerk salary increase ended in a tie, but Mayor Larry Mitchell decided not to inject his tie-breaking vote and the ordinance was denied.
The ordinance to increase the salaries for the mayor ended in a 5-3 no vote, which failed the first reading. Aldermen Ed Collins, Steve Gladden and Danny Steele voted in favor of the pay raises.
Alderman Ken Green motioned that the third ordinance to increase the salary of the city councilmen be tabled and sent back to the personnel and finance committee.
The council first recommended the pay raises on Jan. 8, which included three newly elected alderman who each supported the salary increases. Aldermen Green and Chris Tipton voted against the measure. Bryant city attorney Nga Mahfouz said previously that the council will have to adopt ordinances to make the increases official.
Two of the ordinances failed their first readings and the ordinance to increase the salary of the city councilmen was tabled to a future council meeting.
Gladden supported the pay rate increases, despite saying the elected officials ran for the position “not for the money.” He said the elected officials put in “a lot of hours and work for little pay” and felt that an increase in salary would attract more qualified candidates for the positions.
“The mayor, city clerk and other positions should at least be brought to fair pay,” Gladden said. “In the future we have got to be able to recruit people.”
Collins said if others truly felt that the information from JESAP was inaccurate or skewed that it should be sent back to the personnel and finance committee. However, he said he believed the information was “good information” and acknowledged that “raises are touchy subjects.”
Alderman Adrian Henley said that the JESAP study allowed city employees to receive pay raises, but now that the elected officials are asking for pay raises, it is made into “a big deal.” He said the city gave pay raises to 17 city employees, but “now we are saying something is wrong.”
Tipton said city employees received a minimum pay raise, and not a midpoint pay raise that is suggested for elected officials.
“How can you justify giving the employees a minimum and then jumping us to the midpoint?,” Tipton asked. “It just doesn’t pass the smell test.”
Gladden also questioned why the city can spend “thousands of dollars for fireworks for a city event” but has a problem with salary increases for elected officials. He also said there are particular city employees, like the police and fire chiefs, who make more money that the city mayor.
Tipton said residents of Bryant are not necessarily against a pay raise for the elected officials. However, some are against the amount of the pay raise, he said. He suggested the council consider raising a lower salary increase over a period of time.
“Do we have to get [salary increases] now?” Tipton asked. “I don’t think the citizens would be upset with a pay increase. I think the problem they have is they are seeing a huge pay increase, percentage wise anyhow. The economy is not good, the water bills are going up and everyone is suffering. I don’t know why we can’t do this incrementally. I think a little common sense would go a long way here, especially with the people who voted to put us up here.”
Gladden responded that the city is “good enough for other raises, but not for elected officials.”
Mitchell quickly ended a heated argument and the council passed the motion to table the ordinance.
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