Faced with a proposed 2017 tax hike and other unpopular budgetary measures, Luzerne County Council members have been grilling managers about requests for additional staff.
The administration’s proposal seeks 18 new positions that would cost $689,000 in salaries and benefits — the lion’s share not covered by grants or other funding.
Angela Gavlick, who was hired as human resources director in August, presented her request for a new human resources coordinator position paying $28,000 annually to council last week. In addition to Gavlick, the office employs a business partner and two human resource generalists.
Gavlick pointed to two industry standards recommending a ratio of 1.03 or 1.1 human resource staffers per 100 employees. With more than 1,400 county employees, the county’s human resources would need 10 more employees to meet these standards, she said, noting she would not expect that many.
Luzerne County has a 0.26 ratio, she said, citing the ratios in five other counties: Northampton, 0.68; Lackawanna, 0.40; Lehigh, 0.43; Dauphin, 0.81; and Schuylkill, 0.47.
“We don’t even come close to any of the other counties,” Gavlick said.
But Council Vice Chairman Tim McGinley pointed out there are five other human resource employees not included in Gavlick’s count — one in the courts and four covering human service agency branches, including children and youth and aging.
Councilman Rick Williams urged the administration to combine all nine current human resource staff into one department, allowing them to cross train and share workloads.
County Manager C. David Pedri said he is pursuing options for consolidation but advocated for the additional position. Gavlick and her three employees handle union issues, grievances, benefits, medical leave, disciplinary proceedings and extensive paperwork, he said.
Gavlick said the four human service agency workers focus primarily on processing “extremely involved” state Civil Service Commission paperwork for employees in their departments.
“Four people doing all civil service work?” McGinley said, questioning the volume of the work.
Williams and Council Chairwoman Linda McClosky Houck said consolidation would allow the human service agency workers to assist with other work when they are not handling civil service matters.
County Court Administrator Michael Shucosky, who left the meeting before Gavlick’s presentation, said Friday that the deputy court administrator for human resources is a state employee not paid with county funding. The county’s legislative and executive branches can’t supervise this worker because court branches are a separate entity, he said.
Shucosky said the deputy handles most personnel matters for 270 county employees in court branches, including supervision, hiring, firing, medical leave, discipline and oversight of annual evaluations of all court workers. The court also has its own personnel code, he said.
“The only thing the county ever provides for us is to negotiate and administer union contracts and oversee health care benefits and contributions to the retirement fund,” Shucosky said.
If consolidation proceeds, Pedri said the human service agency workers would have to keep track of time they spend on non-agency business that would not be eligible for state reimbursement.
County Election Director Marisa Crispell pitched her request for an administrative assistant position paying $22,500. This worker would assist with filing fees, election worker training, the promised return of online campaign finance report posting and an assessment of all county polling places, she said.
The election staff would increase to seven employees with the additional worker. Crispell said there were 11 office employees in 2011 before she was hired.
Councilman Harry Haas pointed out the council approved funding to restore the deputy position in the election office this year.
County Information Technology Director Mauro DiMauro requested a technician position paying $32,000, which would increase the department’s staff to four. The administration has argued employees must wait too long for help fixing computer problems due to short staffing.
The proposed county budget includes a 4-percent real estate tax hike. The increase, which would amount to $2 more per month on a property assessed at $100,000, would generate $4.2 million. The budget also proposes a new $5 registration fee on an estimated 280,190 vehicles registered in the county and permanently ending a homestead tax break for primary residences that had been halted in 2015.
