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8/15/2007
How much do you pay your local garbage collector?
It’s all public information, but not all that easy to get at. Recently posted on the FoxPolitics.net web site are City of Neenah and City of Menasha 2007 wages. City of Appleton wages were posted earlier this year, but are from the 2006 salary schedule and must still be updated with 2007 bargaining results.
When I first posted Appleton salaries several months ago, a well-meaning supervisor wrote me to say she disagreed with posting salaries on FoxPolitics.net. She didn’t have a problem with posting the salaries of elected officials, but felt there was “no good reason” to have the salaries of unelected city staff on the site.
She was diplomatic and well-meaning – and I think felt public employees, like many private-sector employees, deserved confidentiality when it came to salaries. As you can guess, I begged to differ.
We, every single one of us, pay these salaries. It’s not only our right, by statute, to know them, it’s our responsibility as taxpayers.
Certainly it’s difficult to compare jobs without having specific job descriptions in front of us. Also, if more than one person serves in the same job (multiple police officers, for example), I’ve averaged the different salaries (different due to tenure). Salaries from municipality to municipality can differ for the same reason – an employee with more tenure in a similar job would likely be paid more.
Below are just a couple of comparisons, using jobs that are most likely similar. If the job is an hourly position, the hourly wage is multiplied by 40 hours per week and 52 weeks per year. Overtime (which is not uncommon) is not included. Also not included are benefit costs, which are typically 40 to 50% of salaries.
Is yours a job that might be similar to any you see listed? How does the salary compare?
City Attorney
Appleton 91,499
Menasha 95,400 (and serves as HR Director)
Neenah 103,259 (and serves as HR Director)
Police Officer
Appleton 49,442
Menasha 51,483
Neenah 49,823
Mechanic
Appleton 47,403 (Master Mechanic)
Menasha 38,750 - 47,965
Neenah 44,148
Park Foreman or Superintendent
Appleton 64,022
Menasha 57,200
Neenah 59,539
If you obtain accurate, complete 2007 wage and salary information from your municipality, then send it to me at news@foxpolitics.net, FoxPolitics.net will do the necessary formatting and calculating, then will post the numbers as a resource for all.
COMMENTS
When will you be posting Town of Grand Chute salaries PLUS fringe benefits? The Town has been reluctant to disclose the cost of fringe benefits. Are Grand Chute compensation packages for town employees meant to be out of sight?
Have you asked for the information Ron? As I promised months ago, I'll see what I can do. JE
Ron Tank (Wed Aug 15 08:03:08 2007)
As the Finance Director for the City of Appleton, I have no issue with the posting of my salary. However, I would prefer the analysis include a more comprehensive approach of looking at the entire benefit package. This is what I have to do in order to attract and retain quality professional staff. When recruiting, in order for me to compete with the private sector, I need show the total compensation package to stay in the arena with my competitors. When I am able to hire the quality staff that I have, here is the resulted savings to our taxpayers:
In 1995, the City paid $90,860.80 for audit and necessary accounting services assistance.
In 2006, eleven years later with many more new accounting regulations to comply with, the City paid just $69,000 for audit services with NO accounting service assistance.
Is this compared in the salary schedule posted? We also had 17.5 employees performing the work compared to 16 today. Like any political analysis, selected data can be presented to paint a picture. Here is some additional black and white to add to the picture.
Good points, all. Thank you Lisa. Productivity enhancing efforts like those you cite are critical, as individual salary and benefit costs increase much more rapidly than inflation.
Lisa Maertz (Wed Aug 15 10:00:28 2007)
Is yours a job that might be similar to any you see listed? How does the salary compare?
Compared with my salary the IT guys are underpaid. But it really depends on what their skill set is and what they are working with.
For example 'Windows Administration' is (currently) where everyone is getting experience and certificates. You can't throw a rock without hitting an ITT grad with an MCSE.
This is due partly to everyone and his brother having an Windows server which in turn causes well-meaning career counselors to advice students to 'get an MCSE'.
When you've got a saturated market the value goes down. You can always get work as an MCSE but you'll also be on the lower end of the scale.
In turn all an MSCE knows (usually) is Microsoft. So they purchase more Windows boxes which perpetuates this state of affairs far longer than the technology warrants.
Which is a long way around the barn to say that the salaries are about what you'd expect for mid-level IT people with a moderate to good knowledge of Windows.
Thanks Brian. As I said in the piece, and as you indicate, with some of the positions, it's important to know the job descriptions to be able to compare with certainty. Thanks for taking a look at the schedules and offering your thoughts. I wonder how benefit packages compare. JE
Brian (Wed Aug 15 10:11:27 2007)
Jo: I have no problem with publication of my salary. However, the comparison between Menasha and Neenah or Appleton is misleading. In both Neenah and Menasha, the City Attorney is also the Human Resources Director. As you know, that is not the case in Appleton. In 1996, Gary Eklund retired as HR Director in Menasha and that position was absorbed into the City Attorney. In 1997, Eklund was making about $56,000. An increase was made to midpoint to reflect the combined position. That increase was about $8,000. If you have any questions, feel free to give me a call at 967-3602. Thanks.
Thank you Jeff. The distinction is made in the salary listings for Menasha, but I didn't include it in the brief comparison. I'll add it. The source document from Neenah doesn't include "H.R." in the position title; I'll confirm and add. JE
Jeff Brandt (Wed Aug 15 10:42:57 2007)
I think this is important information and thanks for undertaking to organize it.
Lon Ponschock (Wed Aug 15 12:08:56 2007)
YOU FORGOT THE DOG CATCHER.
Walt Kalata (Wed Aug 15 23:37:12 2007)
Lisa M.
Are you a '85 RHS graduate?
Mark A Framness (Fri Aug 17 15:34:56 2007)
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