5.1 EMRUSR 07-09-2024 - Laserfiche WebLink

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HANDOUT AT MEETING - 2024-7 - 5.1 plan, but not as many as the proposed 9-step plan. This ensures that employees receive regular pay increases while maintaining the perception of meaningful progression. • Pay Plan "A" o Maxes out at the former Step 9 amounts presented in June o Represents a slightly market leading plan (14.9% average increase) o Positions ERMU's pay at approximately 2% above market average at Step 7 • Pay Plan "B" o Maxes out at the former Step 8 amounts presented in June o Represents a slightly market lagging plan (10.9% average increase) o Positions ERMU's pay at approximately 2% below market average at Step 7 Associated implementation scenarios for each plan will also be provided. Three revised implementation scenarios are described below. Regardless of which scenario is selected, no employee would transition into a step that results in a pay decrease. The first attachment provides comparative examples for each scenario. 1) Scenario 1: Closest Step without a Decrease. This scenario places employees at the closest higher step from their current salary, ensuring no reduction in pay while aligning with the new pay plan. 2) Scenario 2: Stay on Current Step. This scenario keeps all employees at their current step level. Since Step 5 employees would increase to the new max over three years (Steps 5- 7), this option most closely resembles the transition process presented to the commission in November 2023. 3) Scenario 3: Steps based on years in position. This scenario only looks at the number of years spent in their current position, regardless of current step or prior experience. Due to their similarity to Scenario 2, costs for this option are not included in this report. Commission members asked staff to research which of the comparable peers surveyed in the study also had a performance -based incentive (PBI) program. Of the ten peer utilities surveyed, six have existing PBI programs. Of the four utilities that did not currently have a PBI program, two stated they were interested in creating one. As a follow-up question, staff was asked to estimate the implementation costs over the next three years, assuming a 4% cost of living adjustment (COLA) and a 2080-hour work year. The average monthly impact to ERMU's roughly 19,000 metered accounts is also provided. Scenario 1 assumes backpay to early January 2024 since the $135K budgeted for comp study transition costs exceeds the 2024 implementation cost. Scenario 2 assumes a delayed effective date to prevent the 2024 implementation costs from exceeding the budgeted transition amount. Pay Plan A: Step 7 = Former Column 9 (Slightly Market Leading) 1) Closest Step 2024 2025 2026 2027 Total Transition $135,000* $217,659 $162,843 $121,045 $641,015 4% COLA $0 $8,706 $6,514 $4,842 $20,062 Total: $135,000 $226,365 $169,356 $125,887 $661,077 Page 2 of 3