Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, January 18, 1992 TAG: 9201180158
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: RICK LINDQUIST CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: DUBLIN LENGTH: Medium
NEW DUBLIN PAY SCALE INCLUDES MERIT RAISES
Town employees, who have gone without a pay raise since 1990, will get some good news in their paychecks after Feb. 1.Town Council unanimously approved a new classification and pay scale Thursday for the town's two dozen workers, which also provides for 3 percent merit increases.
Town Administrator Gary Elander said that until last fall formal job descriptions did not exist. Now, employees will be classified within 10 step grades, each at a specific salary level. The town plans to evaluate all employees annually to determine raises.
"This is a pay plan based on merit, not on cost-of-living," Elander said.
"We're playing a bit of catch up here," Elander added, noting that all surrounding jurisdictions already have similar plans for employees. "We think we've set it up so every employee will benefit."
Town residents also may benefit later this year when council is expected to cut Dublin's property tax rate from 27 cents per $100 dollars valuation to about 24 1/2 cents. Town residents also pay Pulaski County taxes.
Mayor Benny Keister suggested the tax cut in response to new county property assessments. The mayor said he wanted to see council "reduce the rate so our citizens are not paying any more than they are now." Council members seemed agreeable to the idea.
In other action, council unanimously approved some midcourse corrections to its 1991-92 budget and transferred $4,000 from its contingency fund to cover the cost of employee raises.
Acting on Elander's recommendation, council reduced its projected sales tax revenues by $3,000, state Alcoholic Beverage Control store profits by $1,000, and garbage collection revenues by $4,000.
To offset the reductions, council cut spending for office equipment, town beautification and a recycling pickup vehicle by a total of $8,000.
"I'm sorry to see that we have to cut these proposed expenditures," said councilman David Stanley, who expressed the hope the items could be reinstated later if the revenue picture improves.
Council members also heard a glowing report on the town's recycling program started in 1990. Elander said the town collected 10 tons of recyclable trash the first year and over 10 times that amount during 1991.
"That's a lot of paper, plastic, and aluminum," he said.
Elander said the town's cost-sharing agreement with Wade's Supermarket and the New River Resource Authority earned the town $555 through the sale of recyclables.
"That doesn't seem like much," he said, but recycling helped lower the cost of hauling trash to the burgeoning Ingles Mountain landfill to just $13.32 per ton instead of the usual $45.
Over half of last year's 101 tons of recycled trash was paper, which Elander said has no value on the recycle market.