Luzerne County division head salaries debated

With some expressing strong reservations, nine of 11 Luzerne County Council members rejected Councilman Tim McGinley’s proposal to transfer funds so all division heads could receive at least $94,500.

McGinley said he supported compensation increases for three current division heads because he does not believe they should be paid less than newly hired division heads.

Councilman Kevin Lescavage said before last week’s vote he cannot approve McGinley’s proposal, arguing council is facing other more pressing compensation issues.

“We have people such as janitors in this county barely making a liveable wage, and we’re going to reward some division heads with salaries we agreed to that are already in the budget?” Lescavage said.

Council Chairwoman Kendra Radle said she would love to fund raises for many but agreed with Lescavage’s point that there are multiple issues related to compensation that must be addressed.

Radle also did not believe council should take such an action when county Manager Randy Robertson did not request it. Even if council carried out the transfers, the decision to increase compensation would be up to Robertson, she said.

”I just think this opens a can of worms if we’re changing salaries to make them higher,” Radle said, predicting it could set a precedent for future council members to take the opposite approach and lower allocations for someone they don’t like. “That’s a little bit scary to me.”

McGinley said several division heads have provided years of service and should not be receiving less than new ones hired from outside county government.

“Without question that’s unfair. It might be discriminatory,” McGinley said.

He reiterated council would only be making the funds available and not forcing Robertson to act.

Radle said it’s intervention she is not willing to take.

“I’m over here constantly every other day — council can attest to this — saying read the (home rule) charter and stay in your lane, and I just think this is a little bit out of that. That’s my take,” she said.

Councilman Stephen J. Urban described the ordinance as a “slippery slope” and said Robertson will be submitting his first proposed 2023 budget in less than a month. Urban also said all division heads agreed to their compensation when they were hired.

Councilman Brian Thornton also questioned the propriety of the action.

Councilman Chris Perry was the only member to vote in support, saying it is only a budget transfer and that the manager is “in charge” and free to act as he sees fit.

Robertson, who started as manager June 13, told council he agreed with the ordinance denial and is not proposing additional division head compensation increases at this time.

Individual assessments of division heads are warranted in reaching compensation decisions, he said.

“I don’t think all division heads are created equal. This is my personal philosophy,” Robertson told council.

He also repeated his description that the county is “broken” as evidenced by vacancies in multiple departments, such as Children and Youth.

Indicating Lescavage is “on point,” Robertson said he does not believe the focus on addressing compensation issues should “start at the top.”

All division heads agreed to the compensation when they signed up, he said, pointing to new and more veteran ones in the audience.

“Is that equitable? I don’t know, but I’m dealing with the cards that I have,” Robertson said.

He referred to public defender’s office attorney vacancies that have prompted a halting of representation for indigent residents charged with misdemeanors if they are not incarcerated.

“We have holes here,” Robertson said.

After the ordinance introduction was rejected, McGinley said, “This should send a message to division heads about what their compensation should be.”

Three of eight division head positions were vacant when Robertson was hired.

He hired Harry W. Skene as chief solicitor/law division head at $96,500 annually, which is around the compensation that had been paid to his predecessor Romilda Crocamo.

Robertson’s remaining two hirings were at $94,500 annually — Jennifer Pecora overseeing administrative services and Greg Kurtz to manage operational services. The compensation had been $91,087 for prior operational head Edmund O’Neill, who resigned in January, and $90,874 for David Parsnik, who resigned as administrative services head a year ago.

Thornton had unsuccessfully proposed a motion to reduce Kurtz’s compensation to $91,087, which he said was the amount that had been budgeted for 2022, instead of the $94,500 proposed by Robertson. The compensation remained at $94,500 because only four others supported the reduction amendment: Lescavage, Urban, Carl Bienias III and Gregory Wolovich Jr.

Based on a compensation report released by the administration in January, here are the salaries of the other division heads: Brian Swetz, budget/finance, $96,337; Lynn Hill, human services, $94,280; Mark Rockovich, correctional services, $87,872; Joan Hoggarth, judicial services and records, $87,442; and Stephen Greenwald, chief public defender, $100,616.