Non-Union Employee Pay and Leave Motions Postponed

Brianna Gibbs/KMXT
The Kodiak Island Borough Assembly postponed two ordinances during last night’s regular meeting, both pertaining to pay benefits for borough employees. First up on the list was longevity pay for long-term employees, an ordinance intended to reward borough employees for their commitment and to attract future candidates. Assemblywoman Louise Stutes made the motion to postpone the ordinance because there is currently a study of salaries within the borough.

— (Borough Pay 1 :21 “I would like to move to postpone until at least we get the results of the salary study that we’ve commissioned to have done. I mean this is all related and to make a decision like this prior to getting the study that’s in process doesn’t make good sense to me so I would like to make a motion to postpone until we receive the salary study.”)

Assemblyman Jerrol Friend brought up that the cost estimate for longevity pay was only calculated for nonunionized employees, which is what the ordinance speaks to, but the union employees will be asking for the same benefits during upcoming negotiations and those costs need to factor in.

— (Borough Pay 2 :27 “Well looking at this thing here and looking at the letter we got from Debra Blanchard from the IBEW, it was in our mailbox today, I mean the union is going to pretty much say if you do it for these guys we’re going to want it to. So that is coming and without seeing that dollar amount in the total cost, I’d rather see those numbers, I haven’t seen it in any of my research as to what that cost is going to be.”)

Friend said he would be in favor of postponing the ordinance until those figures and the results of the salary study were included. At the request of Assemblyman Dave Kaplan, Kodiak Island Borough Finance Director Karl Short addressed how long those results might take.

— (Borough Pay 3 : 17 “Right now it’s anticipated that they’ll make their presentation to the assembly sometime in March 2013. But that’s the initial presentation. I know the city’s had theirs in front of them for close to two years, which I hope we don’t do.”)

Upon hearing that, Kaplan said he’d be in favor of postponing the ordinance until March 2013, when that information is available. In the end, the assembly voted six to one in favor of postponing with Assemblywoman Chris Lynch voting against it.
The next item up for discussion was sick leave compensation. Assemblywoman Carol Austerman said it would be appropriate to postpone this ordinance for the same reasoning as longevity pay.

— (Borough Pay 4 :18 “While I am also supportive of some sick pay out at the end of termination of employment, I would recommend that since we have made the motion to delay the prior ordinance that we also delay this one and do them together.”)

That motion also passed six to one, but this time with Assemblyman Tuck Bonney voting against it. The next borough assembly meeting will be on October 18, there is a work session at 7:30 p.m. next Thursday in the borough conference room. ###