Delaware State News
DOVER — Dover city government could raise its nonunion payroll by less than 1 percent to ensure workers are compensated similarly to their counterparts in the private sector and in other government bodies, consultants told a city committee Monday night.
Donald C. Long of the Virginia-based Management Advisory Group Inc. said no more than 17 of the city’s 89 nonunion employees need raises to make their salaries competitive with those offered elsewhere in the region. Those increases would total a little over $43,000 at most, less than 1 percent of the current salary total for workers not part of a bargaining unit.
City Councilman Timothy A. Slavin said the report is an indication the city’s compensation system isn’t in bad shape. Referring to Dover’s compensation as "the patient," he said it appears to be "pretty healthy."
"We have to have confidence in the system we use to pay our employees," Councilman Slavin said.
The system, often referred to as "pay for performance," has been used for several years. The latest recommendations are part of a $35,000 review of whether the city has run it properly.
Councilman Slavin chairs the Legislative, Finance and Administration Committee, which heard the report but can’t put it into action. The decision whether to follow the firm’s recommendations rests with the full council.
Mr. Long and his wife and business partner, Carolyn Long, said the raises need not even total $43,000. They said their calculations were made before implementation in July of 3.66-percent raises for most nonunion employees. Because of the July increases, they said, some of the 17 workers may already be up to standard and others likely will need less of a boost than they would otherwise.
City Manager Anthony J. DePrima, for instance, made about $113,000 when the report was completed and should get a boost to about $123,000, according to the Longs. But that wouldn’t cost $10,000 because his July raise put him within $6,000 of the recommended salary.
The report met some criticism. Councilman William P. McGlumphy, a member of the committee, questioned the Longs’ estimate, saying additional workers might qualify for the effort to provide competitive pay. Council president Beverly C. Williams, who sat in on the committee session, noted that increases granted in response to the report would lead to proportionately larger increases in the future.
Unionized employees aren’t affected by the Longs’ study; their pay is determined in contract negotiations.
