The City of Vernon, Florida called a Special Meeting for Monday, June 28, 2021 at 5:30PM in the board room of City Hall in order to address several issues, including food vendors at the upcoming July 4 festival and a proposal for wage increases for City employees, as seen in this video (see announced Agenda below).
Council member Chad Jackson proposed that he would volunteer to cook and serve food at the upcoming Independence Day Festival at the SportsPlex on July 3, with proceeds going to benefit the Vernon High School Football team.
Discussion ensued concerning a potential difference between the vendor information disseminated by the City staff and the Vernon Recreation Department, which might cause vendor issues.
Council members agreed to allow Jackson to donate his time and services, with the City paying for the food and supplies, and those proceeds going to the Football team, while the City Recreation Department food revenues would go to fund Recreation Department activities.
Discussion ensued concerning the former ‘Band Room’ at the northwest end of the City Hall complex, along with the cosmetic and structural integrity of the edifice and potential health risks such as mold, and the issue was tabled until future workshops.
The Vernon Evangelistic Church was next on the agenda, with discussion and resolution following.
City Clerk Tracy Walker submitted a proposal whereby several City staff members would receive significant hourly wage increases, possibly retroactive to the commencement of prior wage discussions.
Previous dialogue in regular workshops included the discussion that it was difficult to retain employees when neighboring Counties may be offering enhanced compensation packages along with higher hourly wages.
Council member Joey Brock objected to the proposal submitted by Walker, which put the Street Department Supervisor hourly wage several dollars lower than the proposed City Clerk’s hourly wage of $23 per hour.
Brock pointed out that the Street Department Supervisor should receive at least the same hourly compensation as the City Clerk, due to the nature of the expressed duties- including working in extreme and dirty conditions, on-call requirements at all hours of the day and night, and other considerations.
Following some discussion, the City Council voted to award raises to Street Department personnel and delay negotiations for office personnel raises until the City budget is addressed later this fiscal year.
NEW BUSINESS
- 7/4 food vendors
- Update on “Old Band Room”
- Update at Vernon Evangelistic Church
- Employee’s raises