Stanislaus County leaders vote to give themselves a raise. One supervisor opposes it
Stanislaus County supervisors and other high-level officials will receive 3% annual pay raises and the one-time COVID bonuses given to county employees.
The Board of Supervisors approved the pay increases on a 4-1 vote Tuesday.
Supervisor Channce Condit said he couldn’t support the raises for elected officials and county department directors in a time of hardship for county residents who struggled during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I cannot in good conscience vote to give myself a pay raise,” said Condit, who noted that for one thing, his seven months of board service does not justify a raise.
Condit said many county residents were laid off and could not work after businesses were shut down by COVID-related health orders.
The former Ceres councilman, who was elected to the board in November, added that the salaries paid to county department heads are handsome and far above the median income in Stanislaus County of $60,700 a year.
Condit said the average salary of county department heads, such as the public works or environmental resources director, is $184,663 annually, based on information from the county chief executive office.
The routine consent item before supervisors Tuesday followed a practice of giving non-unionized county employees the same pay raises negotiated for labor groups. About 450 employees including managers, department directors, board members and other county elected officials were eligible for the pay raises.
Condit had the item pulled for discussion. He supported the pay raises and bonuses for rank-and-file county employees.
According to the county staff report, most labor agreements negotiated recently have included a 3% wage increase for each of the next three years. The county also has approved bonuses recognizing employees’ work during the COVID-19 emergency.
The board action pushes the annual pay for supervisors to $97,802 starting this month. The supervisor serving as board chairman will be paid $109,533 for that year.
Additional 3% increases for supervisors and the other eligible employees will take effect on July 1, 2022 and July 1, 2023. The three newest board members — Mani Grewal, Buck Condit and Channce Condit — are eligible for COVID bonuses totaling $750; the other supervisors could get $1,500.
At least one supervisor pointed out that department directors often work up to 60 hours a week and some were especially taxed by the pandemic.
Chiesa says raises in line with nearby counties
Board Chairman Vito Chiesa said the salaries for department heads, supervisors and “constitutional” officers, such as the treasurer-tax collector and auditor-controller, stay within a survey of salaries paid in eight comparable counties. The counties are Fresno, Kern, Madera, Monterey, Merced, Sacramento, San Joaquin and Tulare.
Chiesa said the county is in a “partnership” with its 4500-plus employees, who accepted pay cuts in 2011 after the economic crisis. He said these are better times and the county can afford to pay more. The COVID bonuses are covered by federal funds in the American Rescue Plan.
Salaries for board members are set by a county ordinance that allows a pay raise only if supervisors are at least 20% below the average of the multi-county survey. It usually means Stanislaus board members are paid less than supervisors in other counties in the survey.
Chiesa said Stanislaus County took a lead in state-mandated public employee pension reform, which puts the county in a weaker position in recruiting qualified people to oversee county departments.
Supervisor Terry Withrow said he appreciated Condit’s opinion but he supported the pay raises. Withrow noted it’s more difficult these days to find competent people for department head positions.
“To not pay them enough will just make it harder,” Withrow said.
County supervisors are often business owners who don’t run for office for the paycheck, but if the salary is too far below standard, it might close the door on some good candidates for office, Withrow said.
Condit stayed firm on his position, saying a 9% raise spread over three years is not good timing given the struggles of county residents.
Supervisor Buck Condit said he would consider supporting the motion if it denied the 3% annual increases for constitutional officers and board members but kept the pay increases for department heads.
No support for Channce Condit’s motion
Channce Condit’s motion to deny the salary increases and COVID bonuses for department heads, constitutional officers and board members died without a second.
Supervisor Mani Grewal said he could not deny the pay raises for department heads after they went above and beyond in responding to the pandemic.
Chief Executive Officer Jody Hayes noted that individual board members can instruct the auditor-controller not to include the increase in their paychecks.
The one-time bonuses for about 450 non-union employees, including board members, will be paid in September. Total cost for the salary increases for the elected officials and unrepresented employees is an estimated $12.4 million. The bonuses will cost $654,375.
The COVID bonuses are for full-time county employees who reported for work in person or remotely between April 2020 and June 2021. The retroactive payments will range from $50 to $150 per month depending on years of service. Employees with up to four years’ service will get $750 maximum, while those with 20-plus years may be paid up to $2,250.
Channce Condit said Friday he asked county Auditor-Controller Kashmir Gill about giving his raise to charity. He said he was told the county could not do that, so he will personally donate that amount to charitable organizations in his 5th supervisorial district, which includes Ceres, part of south Modesto, Patterson and Newman.
“I don’t want the extra money to get sucked into the bureaucracy and general fund,” Condit said. “I want that put back into the community.”
Grewal, a former Modesto councilman and business owner, said at Tuesday’s meeting he would exercise the option of not accepting the raise in his paycheck.
This story was originally published July 19, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
