Published: December 30, 2008 01:17 pm      

One percent raise approved for Sellersburg employees

After two years without any raises, town employees in Sellersburg will see a 1 percent boost in base salary next year, under a salary ordinance adopted by the town council Monday.

The increase does not apply to elected officials or town administrators, but Councilman James LaMaster did point out that administrators and other town employees are receiving a boost in the form of a town contribution into the Public Employee Retirement Fund.

The town council agreed to pay half of the employee’s weekly PERF contribution in a measure adopted in November.

“If you say they aren’t getting a raise, but you’re paying half of their PERF, they’re getting a raise,” said LaMaster, who voted for the PERF contribution payments.

LaMaster also expressed concern that providing the benefit in the form of PERF payments instead of adding it to the base salary could hurt some employees in the long run.

“If you only get a 1 percent raise on the base salary it’s going to hurt their retirement,” LaMaster said.

But Council President Brian Meyer stressed that the PERF payments were a separate benefit from the pay raises.

“We tried to do it as fair as we could for everyone in the town,” Meyer said.

LaMaster almost held up approval of the pay raises when he was the lone dissenting vote to consider the salary ordinance on first reading.

A unanimous vote on first reading is needed for the measure to be approved at the same meeting. LaMaster rescinded his vote after learning that the measure would be held up and that a special meeting might have to be called Wednesday.

The pay raises come a week after a call by Gov. Mitch Daniels for public employees at all levels to consider foregoing a 2009 raise because of the struggling economy.