The Porter County
Convention, Recreation, and Visitors Commission decided to raise the salary
cap for hourly employees at its meeting Thursday.
Board Attorney
David Hollenbeck reported that hourly tourism employees hit their top pay
rate when they reach $10 per hour. PCCRVC Executive Director Lorelei Weimer
said the salary cap has become a problem since two employees are now at $10
an hour and have no room for increase. One of the employees has been working
for PCCRVC for nine years, and one for 13 years. The employees are eligible
for premium pay, which adds 50 cents per hour, on weekends and holidays, but
the salary cap doesn’t allow for these two employees to be paid $10.50. One
of the long-standing employees regularly works on Sundays.
Hollenbeck
recommended the salary cap be increased to $12 an hour and said the change
must be made retroactive to March 12, so the employees can be reimbursed for
every weekend or holiday hour they have worked since having their pay raised
to $10 an hour. Hollenbeck said the approval process could take the
Commission through June, as the County Council must approve all changes to
the budget. Assuming normal work hours, the employee who often works Sundays
will be owed $52.98 at that time.
Commission
President Mitch Peters, for his part, said the Commission should raise the
salary cap to match the $15 per hour maximum that part-time hourly County
employees are limited to. “I’d like to give us more room so that we’re not
running up against this again in a few years.” He noted that no additional
money would be required for any salary cap increase, but the move would
ensure that the Commission doesn’t have to petition the Council to raise the
hourly salary cap again in the future.
The Commission
voted unanimously to raise the salary cap for hourly employees to $15 an
hour. Hollenbeck will amend the wording and bring the request to the County
Council.