LH City Council Approves 1.9% Pay Hike for Nonunion Employees
LOCK HAVEN – City Council on Monday gave its okay to a proposed 1.9 % pay hike in 2021 for Lock Haven’s nonunion employees, as proposed by City Manager Greg Wilson. The vote was 7-0 to approve the manager’s recommendation. After the vote, Mayor Joel Long lauded the quality of work by city employees during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Wilson said he did not pull the 1.9 % figure “out of a hat,” but based it on a three-year average of the Social Security cost-of-living increase over the previous three years. He said the cost to the city for the hike in 2021 will be $24,577.
The city manager, in response to a later question from therecord-online, shared the negotiated pay raises which will be accruing to city unionized workers next year:
Members of the Lock Haven Police Officers Association are receiving a 2.5% increase in pay and contribute 6% toward the premium of their health & dental premiums (same as 2020).
Members of AFSCME are receiving a $0.43 per hour pay increase, which averages 2.2% and will contribute 8% toward the premium of their health & dental premiums (1% more than 2020).
He noted that for nonunion employees of the city, in addition to the proposed 1.9% pay increase, they will contribute 8% toward the premium of their health & dental premiums (1% more than 2020).
Council spent a portion of its Monday night meeting on the city’s proposed 2021 budget which calls for no hike in the real estate tax for the sixth year in a row. There were no comments from the public during the virtual public hearing. Police chief Kristin Smith and fire department liaison Robert Neff answered questions from council members. The police chief said her department is looking forward to receiving body-cams for its officers through a grant program in the new year. She said because of COVID-19, three officers had to be quarantined during the course of the current pandemic. Chief Neff said to this point, city firemen have been able to avoid the virus; he said his department hopes to resume training for volunteer firefighters in 2021, that effort curtailed this year due to COVID.
