Six-figure state salaries rise, overall payroll drops
Six-figure state salaries are still on the rise in state government, with hundreds more raking in $100,000 or more in 2016 than the year before — with the burgeoning UMass system leading the way, a Herald analysis of state data shows.
About 12,180 employees now top the $100,000 mark, or about 3 percent more than in 2015, according to data posted on the state’s comptroller’s CTHRU website. Of those, roughly 560 now make $200,000 or more, marking about a 9 percent hike from the previous year.
The jumps, fueled largely in part by the still-growing University of Massachusetts system, could shade a new development: State government is actually smaller for the first time in years. The state’s overall payroll plunged about $40 million, to $6.86 billion, and the number of workers overall dipped by several hundred to 126,330.
The leaner staff comes on the heels of several moves by Gov. Charlie Baker to trim spending, including launching an early retirement program last year that culled about 2,500 workers, establishing an executive branchwide hiring freeze and, most recently, wrapping up a buyout program that led to 900 departures.
Compared to the year before, where the number of six-figure workers soared by more than 25 percent, the numbers represent progress, according to a fiscal watchdog.
“Salary is the No. 1 item on the payroll to try to cut back on outside of health care costs, so overall this is good news,” said Mary Connaughton, director of government transparency at the conservative-leaning Pioneer Institute, who said some of the higher salaries could be tied to collectively bargained pay increases.
“The governor has been looking at and trying to find ways to save current dollars,” she added. “Let’s hope it continues.”
Brendan Moss, a Baker spokesman, noted that of the 40,000 employees in the executive branch, all but 2,500 are in unions. “The Baker-Polito administration is pleased to have reduced the state’s bureaucracy by over 2,500 positions, saving hundreds of millions for taxpayers, and will continue to pursue effective cost savings and fiscally responsible budget solutions to support the commonwealth,” he said.
UMass and its $1.35 billion payroll remain the notable outlier. Its salary budget jumped $40 million and, holding from previous years, it dominated the year’s top earners, with 94 of the top 100 coming from the university system. UMass men’s basketball coach Derek Kellogg remained the state’s highest paid employee at $1.06 million, and all nine making $500,000 or more across the state work at UMass.
Asked of the increases, Jeff Cournoyer, a UMass spokesman, said that about 22 percent of the system’s revenue comes from state tax dollars and that its enrollment — now at 74,000 students — continues to grow.
Cournoyer added: “Our growth has resulted in the hiring of new faculty and staff, with compensation designed to be competitive with peer institutions and attract the most qualified and talented people.”