Boardman raises bypass 6

BOARDMAN — While three township department heads got raises for next year and three nonunion personnel got $1,000 bonuses, six others got nothing.

Trustees approved the 2007 pay this week by a vote of 3-0.

Darren Crivelli, zoning inspector, and Larry Wilson, road superintendent, each received 4 percent raises for 2007.

Crivelli earned $53,476.80 this year and will get $55,615.88 next year. Wilson received $68,016 this year and will earn $70,736.64 in 2007.

Fire Chief James Dorman received a 3 percent pay increase, taking his pay from $71,136 this year to $73,270.08 next year.

The assistant zoning inspector and administrative assistants to the police and fire chief each received $1,000 bonuses.

Others usually considered for pay increases at the same time as department heads, including the police support services manager, executive secretary, road department assistant superintendents, assistant to the fiscal officer and recycling coordinator won’t get any increase for 2007.

Jason Loree, township administrator, was hired in September and remains in probationary status, so he wasn’t awarded a raise for 2007.

The 2006 pay ranges from the first assistant road superintendent, Ray Thomas, who made $54,017 in base pay last year plus $9,704 in overtime to John Siwiec, recycling coordinator, who earned $29,536 in base pay and $10.65 in overtime in 2006.

Trustee Elaine Mancini said that in previous years, there was an evaluation process involving input from department heads to determine raises.

“My concern is that the process was changed,” she said.

She voted in favor of the motion, however, because she didn’t want to reject raises for those employees the motion included, Mancini said.

All of the department heads and nonunion personnel received at least 4 percent raises for 2006.

Trustee Kathy Miller disputed Mancini’s account of how raises were given in previous years.

“Everyone got the same,” she said. “It was just across the board.”

Miller said she supports the idea of merit raises.

She said that both Wilson and Crivelli gave exemplary performance in their duties this year and went beyond what was expected.

Miller pointed to both men’s participation in securing grants for the township as well as helping with the township cleanup and other activities.

Their raises reflect that, she said.

Miller also pointed to the township’s financial situation with revenues coming in below what was initially anticipated.

Fiscal Officer William Leicht urged trustees to consider a levy on the November 2007 ballot.

“How do you tell the taxpayers that we’re trying to watch our money, and we just gave all these people 4 percent raises?” Miller said.

It’s possible that the issue will be revisited later if the budget prospects improve, she said.

Trustee Chairwoman Robyn Gallitto said trustees had to balance the township’s financial situation with employee compensation.

“The people who didn’t get any raise did not exemplify a work ethic, attitude or performance — that we know of — that made them stand out,” Gallitto said. “The money is just not as plentiful to hand out like it was.”

Trustees are trying to implement a merit system for raises, she said.

The trustees have a difficult time in dealing with the pay of the nonunion employees because most of them are supervisory personnel, Gallitto said. They supervise employees in unions whose contracts provide automatic increases.

Sometimes, because of overtime and the automatic raises, a supervisor makes less than some of those he or she supervises, Gallitto said.

“When you’re in a difficult financial situation and when every dollar counts, we have to examine employee raises long and hard,” she said. “At the same time, you can’t ignore people who have done an outstanding job.”

She agreed with Miller that both Crivelli and Wilson performed in an exemplary manner this year to earn the 4 percent raises for 2007.

If a department head feels strongly that an employee deserves a raise, he or she can advocate that to trustees, Gallitto said.