Quorum Court panel backs salary survey

Funding ordinance gains endorsement

EL DORADO — The Union County Quorum Court has moved a step closer to funding a salary survey.

The finance committee of the governing body recommended support of an ordinance funding the survey of Union County jobs, at a cost of $34,800, after meeting with a representative of the Fayetteville-based consulting agency Johanson Group earlier this month.

“The finance committee met with the Johanson Group, and what they’re going to provide for the county … will cost $34,800 and will take about 90 days,” Mike Dumas, finance committee chairman and District 1 Justice of the Peace, said last week.

A proposal for the survey — outlining the focus of the study, the methods that will be used and the final product to be delivered to the finance committee and County Judge Mike Loftin — was submitted by Bruce Johanson, co-owner of and principal partner at the Johanson Group.

According to the proposal, the survey is to be undertaken in three phases. The first phase would involve developing job descriptions for 87 positions in the county and rating them using a copyrighted system developed by the firm.

The rating system measures the knowledge and skill requirements of a job, the responsibilities of a job, the contact a worker has with others in the course of the job and the efforts a worker undertakes in doing the job, according to the proposal.

Dumas said the survey will compare the 87 county jobs identified by the Johanson Group against other public jobs within a 50-mile radius.

Representatives of the firm will make several onsite visits. A report with salary recommendations will be presented to the county judge and finance committee upon completion.