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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-18-2000 Admin Com. MinutesDublin City Council Administrative Committee April 18, 2000 7:30 p.m. -Council Conference Room Attendiue: Mr. Peterson, Chair Mr. Adamek Mrs. Boring Mr. Harding, Director of HR & Procurement Ms. Clarke, Clerk of Council Mr. Peterson called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m., noting that the purpose of tonight's meeting is to discuss the reclassification ofthe position of the Clerk of Council He noted that he contacted Mr. Harding and asked that he provide information on current classification levels in the compensation plan, the corresponding salaries, where the current classification for the Clerk and her direct reports fall, and things which should be taken into consideration in any possible reclassification for the Clerk of Council position. Mrs. Boring clarified that only the reclassification of the Clerk of Council is being considered, not that of the two staff members who report to the Clerk. Mr. Peterson conf need this. Mr. Harding distributed the recently revised compensation handbook for the City which delineates the various classifications, pay grades, and the salary range for each of the pay grades. A year ago, prior to the Clerk of Council position being removed from the compensation plan, he did some analysis at the Clerk's request, point factored the position, and was recommending that the position be reassigned from a 7B to a grade 8. In today's terns, that would translate to a range of $35,897 to $53,844. Since that time, the Clerk of Council has revised her job description to reflect the changes in responsibilities, and provided a memo to Council, outlining the existing salary levels of all division heads. In her memo, she has requested that Council consider setting the compensation for her position within the division head pay grade 11, which ranges from $46,615 to $69,923. In response to Mr. Peterson's question to him about reclassifying the Clerk of Council position to division head level, he reviewed some salary survey information provided by MORPC which shows the relationship between the Clerk of Council salary versus other division heads in Ceutral Ohio cities. The data is from August of 1999. In most cases, the Clerk of Council is not compensated at the same level as dept/div heads. There is one exception -Upper Arlington -where the Clerk of Council is presently paid $63,631, a level similar to that of their City Engineer. Arlingtar has the highest paid clerk in the area. The Clerk of Council clarified that the Arlington Clerk of Council has an employment contract which is renewed each year. There is no set range for the position in Upper Arlington. Administrative Conunittee April 18, 2000 Page 2 Mr. Harding stated that although the Clerk of Council position is not often categorized in a compensation plan aC the dept/div head level, that is not to say that Council could not do this in Dublin. I-Ie believes that what is important as Council views the Clerk of Council position in this City is looking at the marketplace. Whether Council decides to have an established pay range for the position or an employment contract with review each year is entirely Council's prerogative. There are three choices: place the Clerk of Council position back in the established compensation plan; do a separate employment agreement for the Clerk of Council; or adopt an ordinance establishing a separate range of pay for the Clerk of Cowmcil position, and within that ordinance specify that the Clerk of Council salary will be evaluated on an annual basis, will be eligible for a merit increase as determined by Council and that the Clerk would be eligible for all benefits provided to other non-union City employees. There are two positions in the City under the direct control ofCouncil -the City Manager and the Clerk ofCouncil -and Council has the prerogative to treat these two positions differently than others. Although most cities don't classify their Clerk of Council as a division/department head, this does not mean that the position can't be compensated at the same level. The Clerk of Council is not a work unit per se, but instead the chief staff person which reports to the governing body. If Council chooses to treat their Clerk of Council position on the same level without calling it a dept/div head, the same end can be achieved. Mr. Peterson stated that Mr. Harding had mentioned that it would be desirable to do a market survey, comparing "apples to apples" in teams of Clerk of Council salaries. What would be involved in coming up with that type of analysis? Mr. Harding responded that the Clerk has provided some data regarding actual compensation of clerks in other cities during 1999, but there is additional information which could be obtained, i.e., pay ranges, longevity, job descriptions, etc. Staff could adjust that informatio~m for inflation, or staff could contact whatever cities Council directs to obtain infonnatiion on pay ranges for their clerk. Mr. Peterson stated that it would be important to find out what the volume and duties of the other positions are in order Co have good comparison information. Mr. Harding stated that at the back of the information he provided from MORPC, there is a description of the benchmark for the Clerk of Council position. Staff could provide the revised job description to those cities for comparison purposes in obtaining this same type of information. Mr. Peterson comnmented that perhaps gathering all of this information is unnecessary and makes it more complicated than it needs to be. Council could simply rely upon their sense of what the job entails in Dublin versus other cities. Mr. Harding stated that the information provided to Council by MORPC is fairly recent (1999), and with some factoring for inflation and the different duties of the position in Administrative Conunittee April 18, 2000 Page 3 Dublin, along with review of the information provided by the Clerk about salaries in other cities, Council could determine what level they would be comfortable with. Mr. Peterson stated that there two separate issues. First, there is the issue of whether Dublin has a range that is appropriate, fair and reasonable as reflected in the marketplace and justified by survey information. This would be along-range decision and would not necessary apply to the person currently serving in the Clerk of Council position. Secondly, the compensation level for the current person serving as Clerk of Council. This is a separate issue for consideration. Mr. Harding added that there are some cities which do not establish ranges for their clerk - they base the compensation on the market and review it on an annual basis. Mr. Peterson asked if there are any major drawbacks to the three options Mr. Harding outlined to Council, or any major benefits of one over the other. Mr. Harding responded that it is a matter of personal preference and what Council would be comfortable with. Mr. Adamek noted that Mr. Harding had previously recommended that this position be graded at a 7B or 8 -are the persons aC these grades not generally compensated on an hourly basis? Mr. Harding responded that this is correct. The exempt ornon-exempt positions are generally split at grade 6 and below. The 6B's are generally more administrative, managerial and not compensated hourly. Paygrade 7 is usually a benchmark for professional staff for those with a college degree or master's degree. Paygrade 8 is generally a higher grade level for someone with more supervisory responsibility, and a 10 in the City structure is an Assistant division head. Pay grade 11 is a division head; 12 is a department head; and 13 is an Assistant City Manager. Mr. Adamek asked about the general work week for those at a 7B level, and what kind of hours would be expected with the nornial workload. Mr. Harding responded that this depends upon the nature of the position. For example, in Community Relations, those graded at 7B work more than 40-45 hours per week during event season. However, the rule of salary administration is that the volume of work is an indicator of staffing level, not a factor which should be related to salary. A higher level of paygrade should not be attached to a position because of the work hours involved. Mr. Adamek noted that the Clerk of Council position is expected to work many hours to staff the evening meetings of Council and their Committees. How does this relate to the pay grade. Mr. Harding stated that this relates to the expectations of the position, and in recognition of these expectations, many positions are graded higher, i.e., planners. Administrative Conmmittee April 18, 2000 Page 4 Ms. Clarke stated that City policy allows compensatory time for professional positions in return for the hours worked in Che evening or weekends, but the reality is that it is diff cult to take compensatory time azld meet the workload expectations of the position. Mrs. Boring commented that she is most familiar with the planner positions and notes their respective paygrades listed in the plan. She somewhat understands what the expectations of those positions are. Ms. Clarke noted that as outlined in her memo, the Clerk of Council position in Dublin functions as a division head -attends staff meetings in this capacity, etc. If another person were to f 11 this position at a later date, she would still recommend that the position be classified at a division head level. The expectations in Dublin require that the Clerk of Council position be filled with someone who has the education and experience to meet the demands of the job. Mr. Harding commented that in certain other jurisdictions, there may be less complex issues and therefore the requirements are less. The Clerk of Council position in Dublin is more similar to that of cities such as Upper Arlington or Centerville, and the expectations in these communities may be very different from some smaller cities/villages. The Clerk of Council in Dublin has a college degree and understands the higher level, more complicated issues that are encountered in a sophisticated environment such as Dublin. Mrs. Boring stated that in teens of managerial responsibility, what is the typical number of employees supervised by division heads? Mr. Harding responded that this varies. Some Assistant Department heads have many employees reporting to them; others have few. Those at paygrade 10 do have a similar scope of responsibility and authority in the organization; it does not really relate to the number of employees supervised. It may instead relate to decision-making authority, impact of their authority, and the consequences and outcomes of their decisions. The autonomy of the position is also a factor in the paygrade established. Mrs. Boring asked him to explain the scope of duties for paygrade 9. Mr. Harding responded that paygrade 9 is the highest level of professional administrative position that may or may not supervise employees. This could be a civil engineer or high level professional position. Mr. Peterson asked how the Committee would like to proceed. Mr. Adarnek asked if the Clerk has any additional information for the Committee. Ms. Clarke stated most of her comments are outlined in the memo she has already provided to Council. She has served as Clerk of Council for 9 years and has a background as a Community Relations Coordinator for a local hospital and as a legal Administrative Conunittee April 18, 2000 Page 5 secretary prior to that. She holds a B.A. in English. At the time she accepted the Clerk of Council position, the pay was low but she believed that the opportmrity was good and that it was a good fit for her background and experience. Over the years, as Dublin has grown, the job has evolved into a more professional, administrative level position. It is important to note that at the time the reclassification was explored, the job description had not been revised. The revised job description does reflect the current responsibilities of the position, and the salary survey information provided in her memo does provide relevant comparisons. It is difficult to compare Clerk of Council duties with Yhose in other communities as cities are very different. Over time, the position has evolved into one with more responsibility -interfacing with other professional staff at division/deparin~enC head meetings, administration of the Clerk's office and support staff, media and community relations on Council's behalf, supervising the campaign financing reporting requirements -and she strongly believes that establishing the paygrade at that of division head is appropriate and justifiable. She recommends that the position of Clerk of Council in Dublin be established at a division head paygrade level in the compensation plan. The position has broad interaction within the organization and outside of the organization, and there is a broad spectrum of duties/responsibilities in the position. Mr. Harding affirmed that ten years ago, the position of Clerk of Council was not viewed as a professional position. Due to Ms. Clarke's efforts during her tenure, this position has now become a professional, administrative position. Ms. Clarke has attained the professional certifications as requested by Council when she was hired, and there is an enormous level of professionalism which now exists with this position. Mrs. Boring stated that even at a paygrade 8, this would not be considered a clerical position, as the top clerical position is graded at a 5. Council does not consider this position as clerical. Mr. Harding responded that 10 years ago, the position was largely clerical, but the role has been expanded due to Ms. Clarke's qualifications and abilities. Mr. Adamek asked if the Clerk of Council were to leave this position, would either of the Assistant Clerks easily be able to fill this position? Ms. Clarke responded that in terms of the expectations of the position currently, they could grow into the position -but she doesn't believe either would be willing or able to step into the position tomorrow. Mrs. Boring stated that it is difficult for her to consider the Clerk of Council position at the same level as a division head. Based on the description of the organizational impact of their decision making, she does not believe that the Clerk of Council has the same level of responsibility. She sees more similarity in the City Manager's secretary position in terms of coordinating information, etc. Administrative Conmrittee April 18, 2000 Page 6 Mr. Peterson stated that if changing the Clerk position in the compensation plan would have a domino effect on other positions, and in view of the evolvement in the position of the clerk and the growth of the City over the past 10 years, the present Clerk is in a unique situation. What this implies to him is an employment contract arrangement for the present Clerk of Council, with the flexibility of assigning the position to an appropriate pay range at a later date if the present clerk should leave. This enables Council to reward the things the present clerk has done in growing this position within the City organization to adapt to the needs. He would tend toward a contract arrangement as is done for the City Manager -the other person hired solely by Council. Ms. Clarke agreed that there is justification for not including the Clerk of Council position in the compensation plan, as Council has the ability to set the salary at whatever range they believe is appropriate at the time that person is hired. Mr. Peterson stated that the present Clerk has been in a unique situation as she was the incumbent during a time of growth and change in the position. He asked what the benefit would be of approving an ordinance with a customized pay range for this position as opposed to an employment contract in terms of "tying Council's hands" for the future in regard to salary for the Clerk of Council position. He believes that a specific contract for the cun~ent clerk would allow Council to make the adjustments they would like in the salary without having any kind of domino effect on the others in the compensation plan and without tying a future Council's hands in the hiring of a clerk. Mr. Harding agreed that if Council's wish is to recognize the unique situation or individual talents of the incumbent in the job, the employment contract would be the best choice. Each year or two, the salary can then be re-evaluated by this process. Mr. Peterson stated that if, in order to be flexible, a very wide range is established for this position via ordinance, the effect is similar to having no range at all. This doesn't seem to make sense. Mr. Harding stated that as HR Director, he deals with perceived inequities in the comp plan -adjusting one salary may bring a number of incumbents forward who believe they have an inequity based on this change. If Council were to establish this position as a division head level, others may seek to compare themselves whether or not there is basis. To avoid this, he would recommend that Council look to the market for a benchmark, and review the unique qualifications of the incumbent in relation to the compensation to be established via an employment contract. Mrs. Boring suggested that the Committee adjourn to executive session to discuss the particular individual's compensation. Mr. Peterson moved to adjourn to executive session to discuss personnel matters Administrative Committee April 18, 2000 Page 7 Mrs. Boring seconded the motion. Motion carried unanimously. Mr. Adamek asked if staff have any other comments regarding this matter. Mr. Harding stated that he believes that an employment agreement is something Council should seriously consider. The City of Upper Arlington uses an employment agreement for their Clerk. Mr. Adamek asked if this option would be agreeable to the Clerk. Ms. Clarke responded that this seems the most logical option based on tonight's discussion. Creating inequities in the compensation plait would not be a desirable outcome of making this change for the Clerk of Council position. Mr. Adamek stated that Council is trying to balance the unique situation of the incumbent in this position while recognizing the need to be sensitive to changes that may impact the rest of the organization. Mr. Harding stated that the only two positions controlled by Council are the City Manager and the Clerk of Council, and therefore the precedent has already been established with the employment agreement done for the Manager. The meeting was adjourned to executive session at 8:20 pan Clerk of Council