Town of Berlin meets to discuss future wages for town employees

BERLIN, Md. – The town of Berlin is hosting a meeting to discuss future wages for town employees. The mayor and council will meet with the human resources director and other staff to review another step forward on the wage study that was conducted by the town prior to this fiscal year.

The point of this is to make Berlin’s wages more comparable to other nearby cities and towns. Some progress has been made for this current fiscal year, by trying to move employees close to fifty percent of market value.

“We were able to make a jump from our base rate of twenty five percent of market rate and the mayor and council are working forward to achieve that fifty percent,” said Mayor Zack Tyndall.

Another phase in the wage study is to place employees on a step and grade system. This will be the main focus of Monday’s meeting. The FY25 budget will also be discussed.

Mayor Tyndall says this is a great tool for the town to make sure pay equity, or fair pay, is achieved for all employees. “Each year when we are moving into the next fiscal year budget, we have a better understanding of what our salary expenditures are before we start that budgeting process,” he said.

Town employees say that in the past, they were the last item on the list, with capital improvements usually being put first. The step and grade system will be a useful tool to provide data to give the town employees the pay that they deserve. That system should also address some of the recruitment and retention needs.