By VICKI URBANIK
Porter County’s judges are seeking higher pay for their court workers, in
part because the salaries and perks for other county government employees
outweigh those of court personnel.
Porter County Superior Court Judge Julia Jent told the Porter County Council
at budget hearings Tuesday that unlike other county employees, court workers
do not get breaks built into their work day. They must stay at work for as
long as court proceedings take, sometimes working late into the night, she
said.
“Our staff is lucky to take a lunch break,” she said.
Also speaking in support for higher court worker pay was Porter County
Circuit Court Judge Mary Harper, who said that taking into account vacation,
sick days and personal days, county employees actually get up to five more
paid days off than court staff.
By the time the county budget hearings conclude in the coming weeks, the
Porter County Council is expected to grant across-the-board raises to county
employees for 2009. But whether it will agree to give court workers an
additional pay hike remains to be seen. The council took Jent’s request under
advisement Tuesday.
On behalf of all the county’s judges, Jent requested raises ranging from 2.3
percent to 3.9 percent for court staff, in addition to whatever raise is
given to all county employees.
Under the request, the pay for a court executive assistant would go from
$27,895 to up to $28,983, while the pay for court secretaries would climb
from $26,250 to up to $27,273. The pay for a court reporter would go from
$34,881 to $35,701 and for a bailiff, from $31,845 to $33,128. The salary
amounts are somewhat different for the employees in the magistrate courts.
Jent’s report compared the pay for other secretaries elsewhere in county
government and found that several other departments pay their employees
several thousands of dollars more than the courts do.
Her report also noted that the county council earlier this year approved two
new positions in the clerk’s office, both at a higher pay than what’s
currently paid to court secretaries, even those who are veteran county
employees.
The plea for higher court worker pay seemed to win some support from the
council.
“We have some terribly, terribly underpaid” positions in county government,
said council member Karen Conover, R-3rd.
If the pay can’t be adjusted during the current budget hearings, Conover said
the council should consider bringing in a consultant to review pay levels in
an attempt at finding fairness.
Council member Jim Burge, R-at large, said instead of a consultant, the
county needs a human resources director to ensure that salaries are equitable
among various county departments.
Council President Robert Poparad, D-1st, issued a warning of sorts: The court
budgets are the first to be reviewed at this year’s budget hearings. Other
departments are also likely to put in a plug for higher pay for their staff
as well, he said.
Accordingly, later at Tuesday’s budget hearing, Porter County Chief Adult
Probation Officer Neil Hannon pointed out to the council that a secretary who
has been in his department for 11.5 years now makes $2,000 less than an
entry-level deputy in the county clerk’s office.
Jail Team Proposed
One of Hannon’s budgets includes a $45,870 increase for the toxicology lab;
when added to his other budget, the total cost for drug screenings for adult
probation next year will be $185,870.
Hannon said that the county can do presumptive screenings in-house, but that
if the results come back positive, the county incurs greater costs by sending
the results to a lab for final confirmation.
The high cost of drug testing prompted Poparad to question if the county
could cut expenses by making a concerted effort to reduce the jail prisoner
population. He suggested putting together a team, with representatives from
the sheriff’s department, the courts, and probation, to identify alternatives
to sending people to jail.
Superior Court Judge Jeff Thode noted that the county courts already have a
variety of programs that are used as jail alternatives. “The key is putting
the right people in the right program,” he said.
Council members also took note of another increase in one of Hannon’s
budgets: A $50,000 boost in the cost of Antabuse, which is used in an
anti-alcohol program. Hannon said one company has control of the Antabuse
market, and that efforts to use an alternative product failed after lobbyists
successfully blocked the product in Indiana.
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Posted 8/13/2008
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