Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato raises pay for some county employees
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato, as one of her first acts in office, is raising the pay for county employees.
But it won't impact all employees immediately. The county executive says when she learned there were about 1,000 job openings, something had to change to make sure people were working and filling the positions.
Starting pay for full-time workers moves immediately to $18 per hour and up to $22 per hour by 2027.
Part-time employees will see starting pay go to $15 per hour. Right now, a few hundred full-time workers will benefit, and a few dozen part-time employees. Union employees won't see the pay bump as they get pay decided by collective bargaining agreements.
"When we invest in people, we are investing in our local economy," Innamorato said.
This all comes after Allegheny County Council passed a pay raise, but it was shot down in court. At that time, then-Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said the raise would come with a $30 million tax increase.
According to the current administration, the 2024 budget covers it. Future years need to be figured out.
"We're going to be working with our budget office to determine what the future implications are. There will be budget implications in that," Innamorato said.
Allegheny County Councilman Sam DeMarco isn't against raising wages, but he wants to know how this is all going to work. He said the administration did not provide him with any details.
"I would like to look at the details, understand the proposal, understand the ramifications to the budget and to the taxpayers before making further comment," DeMarco said Wednesday on the phone.
He later said in a statement after getting more information, "As fiscal steward of the county, the executive's obligation is to the taxpayers. Sending a signal that she intends to increase costs without first assessing the budget implications could lead to massive tax increases as well as a business slowdown as job-creators find themselves competing with government in terms of salaries."
Other benefits Innamorato is rolling out include starting employees with three weeks of vacation, as opposed to one week, and no waiting period for paternity leave or sick time.
"The county has record-low unemployment right now. That means hiring is competitive. The county cannot compete if we are not recognizing the work-life balance that people need to be successful," Innamorato said.
The hope is by giving more benefits and better pay, the county will not have to spend money on recruiting employees.