All Vance County employees will get a one-time bonus in next week’s pay period – $500 for all part-time staff and $1,000 for full-time staff. The approximately $280,000 will come from the fund balance.
The Vance County Board of Commissioners approved a recommendation from the Human Resources Committee presented by Assistant County Manager Jeremy Jones at their regular monthly meeting on Monday.
County Manager C. Renee Perry recommended that the board cease paying exempt employees overtime pay when they volunteer to take extra shifts because of staffing shortages; rather, they will get comp time for the additional hours worked.
Perry told the board that is what is spelled out in the county’s personnel policy, but that policy hasn’t been followed for several years.
This comes amidst a countywide salary study, the results of which are not yet available. “I believe that when the study is done, it will fix itself,” she said of the overtime issue and the pay scale for employees.
As part of internal control procedures, Perry said she reviews employee timesheets and can see the hours that staff turn in. “Now that we’re catching it, we need to go with the personnel policy,” she told commissioners. My recommendation is to stop the straight time pay,” she said. “Consistency is key.”
Money to fund the overtime had been available from lapsed salaries and from funds allocated for positions that have not been filled, but Perry said not all departments have those extra funds.
“It’s not fair to pay one group and not another,” she said.
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