Lake County Council addresses election staff salaries
The Lake County Council addressed the salaries of board of elections director Michelle Fajman and assistant director Jessica Messler at their meeting on March 11.
Fajman’s salary was increased an additional $2,000 to account for her certifications for a total of $75,164. Messler’s salary remains at $73,164. To cover Fajman’s salary increase, council also moved $9,200 from the Overtime line item to the Professional line item.
Councilman Randy Niemeyer said the salaries are typically identical. However, with Messler filling the vacancy left by LeAnn Angerman’s resignation at the beginning of February, she has not yet had the opportunity to earn the same certifications of which both Fajman and Angerman have, he said.
Approximately $7,200 of the money transferred from the Overtime line item was to cover Angerman’s compensatory and sick time left over after she left the county’s employment.
Niemeyer questioned whether or not the county should be on the hook for the compensation when council met for their work session on March 6. However, if council wouldn’t have paid out Angerman, Messler would have had to wait approximately six weeks to be classified a full time employee, he noted.
Niemeyer cited the county’s handbook in regards to how exempt and non-exempt employees are defined. Niemeyer said an exempt employee “may be exempt from retirement or compensatory time requirements.” He also noted there are examples in the handbook as to what is exempt and non-exempt.
“It’s basically the people who are punching the clock, so to speak, qualifies for that time,” Niemeyer explained, “and the folks who are salaried do not.”
Council president Christine Cid suggested they send a memo out to all county departments which explains the clarification. Niemeyer said it was always more of a “payroll thing” in the past.
“We’ve always done things a certain way and not always necessarily referred to how it should be done within our own governing documents,” Niemeyer said.
Fajman said in 2014, letters from both parties’ chairmen based on what the human resources director at the time said overtime should be allowed to be paid out to salaried employees during election season. She said she kept track of her hours during the election cycles in case the overtime ever got called into question, but she never got paid overtime herself.
“I appreciate that,” Niemeyer responded, “but unless that’s memorialized in a salary ordinance or updated in our handbook, I don't know how we can enact those things that were letters of goodwill from party chairman when it’s the council that has to enact that legislatively.”
In other news, with March having been designated as Women’s History Month, council also recognized three first-ever Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) Girls Wrestling Champions. The athletes are Aleksandra Bastaic, Highland, 145-lb; Ava Strayer, Crown Point, 125-lb; and Joy Cantu, Merrillville, 110-lb. Also recognized was the Merrillville High School girls wrestling team, which won the Indiana High School Girls Wrestling (IHSGW) State Dual Championship.
Council also recognized the Crown Point High School Varsity Dance Team for their many accolades at their competitions this season.
The next meeting will be at 10 a.m. April 8.