The presentation for the work session on Thursday, Nov. 3 included spending $660,000 general fund money, freed up by the $59.4 million in American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds, on “employee transition expenses.”
This money is not for employees transitioning to other jobs but is money to pay employees because the city is switching from paying semi-monthly to bi-weekly.
There are plusses and minuses for both semi-monthly and bi-weekly pay schedules, but switching from one to the other is confusing, time consuming and can cause problems for employees – particularly employees living paycheck to paycheck.
The switch doesn’t change the salaries of any employees, but it does have an effect on the amount of their paychecks.
Under the bi-monthly pay schedule, employees are paid twice a month, 24 times a year. Under the semi-weekly pay schedule, employees are paid every other week or 26 times a year. Two months out of the year employees will receive three paychecks instead of two.
According to the Greensboro Human Resources Department “Biweekly Pay FAQ” page, under the current system full-time employees are paid for 86.67 hours during each pay period. Under the bi-weekly pay schedule full-time employees will be paid for 80 hours each pay period.
Since paychecks are smaller and the pay schedule is not based on the monthly cycle, both the smaller paychecks and the timing of those checks can create budget problems for employees who don’t have money left over at the end of the month.
The city staff is requesting that $660,000 of money freed up by ARP funds be allocated to pay for a “City maximum ten hour match for employees cashing in leave time as part of the transition assistance for bi-weekly payroll,” according to the work session presentation.
According to the FAQ page, “transition assistance does not have to be paid back to the City.”
The employee transition assistance plan is on the final page of the work session presentation along with $750,000 for the employee health insurance fund and this $1.4 million to benefit city employees was not discussed in any detail by the City Council during the work session.
Wow…no other problems for the city brain trust to work on. Amazing.
If you can’t budget your puffed-up salary in govt work, you shouldn’t be in govt work.
Puffed up salary only applies to the “wheels” as we called them. When I worked for the city, COLAs were never more than 2-3% in a good year and if your evaluation was “above standard” you might get an extra 1%. This was even during the Carter years when a ballon mortgage was going at 18%. I recall that one city manager got a 15% raise one year and other ” wheels” while not getting 15%, did get substantially more than 1-2%.
The peons never get(got) puffed up pay.
Are you serious? Did you even look at the purpose for the funds as directed by Congress and the President. They are to go to benefit the PEOPLE impacted by the influences of Covid….how about your tax payers idiots.
“Since paychecks are smaller and the pay schedule is not based on the monthly cycle, both the smaller paychecks and the timing of those checks can create budget problems for employees who don’t have money left over at the end of the month.”
John, employees will get used to the changes and guess what. . . .twice a year they will get three checks in a month. Having worked in organizations that paid monthly, weekly, semi-monthly, and bi-weekly, you really can’t beat bi-weekly when you get 3 checks.
First get rid of the manager. He is not trained enough to run a city this size. Send him back to the Great State of Charlotte.
Second, the Mayorband Council and read the federal legislation and criteria for use of that money. It isn’t manna from heaven.
Third there is plenty of money to give all of your taxpayers repeat taxpayers a check for $100 to help them with their Covid related expenses
4. Wouldn’t it be nice if you actually considered all of your taxpayers instead of some of the useless nonprofits like Cure Violence.
American Rescue Plan …….Is not being used for its intended purpose, if going from semi monthly to bi weekly is a hardship think about the people with no job or those with more bills then money because they had to make sure they can get there kids to school safely…they use money that could actually help people to offset nonsense I have been working since I was 12 yrs old form tobacco pulling to desk job and I had every pay set from getting paid daily ,weekly , bi weekly, semi monthly to monthly. Be good steward with what God has blessed you with .
I honestly think it’s time that the people of Greensboro challenge the Council in court. There are too many issues, too many misuses, to much racial bias, too much money disappearing. This Council is incompetent. I voted, but not for them.
Switching from semi-monthly to bi-weekly benefits one side…..the employer. It was developed to allow employers to hold a large portion of employee salary for 6 months and use it as working capitol or to invest and earn interest before paying it back to the employees in the catch up months with 3 checks. I actually chose my work place partially because I like semi-monthly and think it is much more employee “friendly”. The extra $500 a month I can spend, save, invest, or bad my work boots. Regardless what I do with it, it’s my money and I have it in my hand to use how I see fit.
For all those that think the switch isn’t a big deal….let me hold 8% ($425 in my case) of your pay each month for 6 months, I’ll use it to run a business and invest earning interest and then after those 6 months, I’ll give you back just the 8%, no more.
There’s a reason weekly and bi-weekly are the most common…..they benefit.the employer, not the employee