The Warren County Commissioners approved a proposed budget for 2025 that included pay raises for county staff and elected officials on Jan. 28.
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The Warren County Commissioners approved a proposed budget for 2025 that included pay raises for county staff and elected officials on Jan. 28.
Both county elected officials and regular staff will be receiving raises of six percent moving forward.
The measure also included upgrades to starting pay scales for county employees. Under the new pay scale, sheriff’s deputies will start at a rate of $27 per hour, corrections officers at $20 per hour. New full-time clerical staff will start at $15.50 per hour with part-time clerical staff starting at $13.75.
Full-time road crew workers will start at $21 per hour while part-time road crew workers will start at $18 per hour.
Presiding Commissioner Joe Gildehaus also thanked County Clerk Denise Stotler for her hard work on the pay raise measure and the budget.
County elected officials had previously met for a salary commission in October 2024 as required by state statute and decided to hold off on a decision until budget discussions were held at the beginning of this year.
The budget hearing, held on Jan. 28 was sparsely attended, although one citizen, Wanda Thomas did have some notes.
“The 6% raise I understand, I would hope we could move to something like COLA (cost of living adjustment) plus one (percent) or something a little more reasonable than 6% every year,” said Thomas.
Sheriff Kevin Harrison was also present at the hearing and thanked the commissioners for approving the pay raise for all department staff.
“This decision reflects your recognition of the hard work and dedication of the men and women who serve this community,” said Harrison. “The support means so much to all of us as this not only helps us feel valued, but also provides much needed relief during challenging times.”
Thomas also asked if there were any merit-based raises being implemented or if the pay increases were simply a “cost of living adjustment.”
Gildehaus said the pay increases were cost of living adjustments but that he and Harrison have had discussions about making a switch to merit-based raises.
“That’s probably going to be on the agenda for this year,” said Gildehaus. “It’s something we want to work on sooner than later.”
Harrison said he was not against a move to merit-based raises although he said it would have to be implemented carefully to avoid creating tension between his staff.
According to Gildehaus, Sheriff’s Department employees make up roughly half of the county’s staff.
All pay raises were effective Jan. 28, following the measure’s approval after the budget hearing.
