Fulton County employees have a little extra to smile about as the County Commission has approved a 5 percent cost of living adjustment to their paychecks. The increase comes as part of efforts to keep pace with inflation, which has driven up the costs of essentials. The Commission also bumped up the starting wage for full-time employees to $38,000 a year, which equals $18.27 per hour, during their recent meeting on Jan. 24, according to RoughDraftAtlanta.
The Commission's move, aiming to retain its workforce in the face of rising living costs and stem the outflow of workers, is buttressed by the findings of The Segal Company market compensation survey. Despite the tight budget, which is up a scant $30 million than previously projected for the previous fiscal year, county officials are striving to navigate their financial constraints. County employees paid by the state and constitutional officers, however, are set to miss out on this COLA, as reported by RoughDraftAtlanta.
The brightened budget situation, detailed at a Fulton County meeting, nonetheless, stops short of allowing for expanded services in 2024 due to an unchanged property tax rate. County Manager Dick Anderson told commissioners, "The good news is, the end of year results … were $30 million better than the mid-year projection," as The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. The forthcoming 2024 fiscal year's budget is set at $1.3 billion, wherein raising the county employees’ pay-to-market rate was a prominent concern.
Debate over budget allocations didn't stop with the cost-of-living adjustments, as Commissioner Bridget Thorne raised the issue of cutting costs, such as the proposed $35 million for up to five elections and a $12.8 million contract for temporary workers which she described as "exorbitant." With a hawk's eye on the $1 million set aside for voter education, she also criticized spending on the investigation into the former President, with an eye on the $157.6 million fund balance by year's end, noted by CFO Sharon Whitmore in her update to the commissioners, outlined in an interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
In the context of the county's definition of a "living wage," and the adjustments for current employees at the start line of $32,000, Chief HR Officer Kenneth Hermon pointed out that the pay increase to $38,000 would position Fulton ahead of other local governments. This change, as he said, would affect about 235 people currently making the county's starting wage, who will also see their compensation rise to the new threshold, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution detailed. With such moves, the Fulton County Commission seems to be taking affirmative action to reconcile employee satisfaction with responsible budgeting.
