Thursday, January 31, 2013
County Employee Bonuses Remanded For Further Review
An effort to pay a bonus to employees of Lawrence County government has been remanded to committees for further review.
Members of the Lawrence County Commission considered during a meeting Tuesday evening, passage of a resolution that would have given employees a one-time bonus of $300. The intent was to pay employees a bonus because they had received no pay raises under the 2012-13 annual budget.
The raise was meant to apply to fulltime employees, not to part-time employees or elected officials. Sponsors said the bonus would have cost the county $89,000 if all employees were included, or $75,000 if employees of the highway department were excluded.
Commissioners explained that, like the school board, the highway department operates under a budget that is completely separate from the general government.
They said that, if the bonus funds were allocated to the highway department, the county would have no authority over how those funds were utilized.
In addition, they said that the funds would be considered an increase in the department’s budget, therefore it would have to be paid annually.
The resolution had been drafted after having been brought before the county’s Budget Committee. After discussing the pros and cons of each option the majority voted to defer action, requesting further review through the Benefits Committee.
