Wage increase approved for part-time and seasonal employees

Avon Lake City Council approved March 27 wage increases for student interns in addition to parttime and seasonal employees.

The ordinance raises the maximum salary cap to $15 an hour from $12 an hour.

Council-at-Large member John Shondel said for several years, department heads have experienced difficulty hiring and retaining employees who in many cases provide unique and specialized skills and services to the city.

The legislation will allow hiring managers to exercise more flexibility in their hiring decisions based on the education, training and experience of applicants, Shondel said.

“It is very difficult to legislate good judgment on the part of hiring managers,” he said. “But, it is certainly possible to put some basic parameters into the legislation.”

Ward 3 Councilman John Meiners supported the legislation, but expressed some reservations.

Meiners is asking Council to provide a list of employees who will receive wage increases to $15 per hour to evaluate the cost effectiveness for the city.

“So, what I’d like to see is whether we are getting a bang for our buck,” he said.

Avon Lake Mayor Gregory Zilka said there are many employees who have worked for the city a number of years at $12 an hour who will now see varied increases.

“So, anyone can imagine those individuals will be near the top and they still won’t be at $15 per hour,” Zilka said. “But we are going to have the leeway now to pay interns and some part-time people who provide great value to us more than $12 per hour.”