Huntington town board gives 6% raises to 43 appointed employees
The Huntington town board from left: Dave Bennardo, Sal Ferro, Ed Smyth, Theresa Mari and Brooke Lupinacci. The board voted to give 6% raises to 43 appointed employees this month. Credit: Rick Kopstein
Town of Huntington officials gave 6% raises to 43 appointed employees across departments this month.
Town Supervisor Ed Smyth said many of the employees had not gotten a raise since before the pandemic. The increases are being paid for with money found through efficiencies such as moving duties from one department to another and not filling budgeted open positions, officials said.
"These are long overdue raises for people who make the daily operations of the town work," Smyth said.
He said the raises ranged from $69 for a part-time administrative law judge to $4,110 for the town's director of engineering services.
The 6% pay hike represented the consensus of the town board after considering the town’s blue- and white-collar union employees receive 2% raises this year and in 2025, and received their contractual raises during the pandemic, Smyth said.
The board approved the raises 5-0 at its July 9 meeting.
The total cost of the raises for part-timers for the remainder of 2024 is $12,492, and $112,297 for full-time workers. The money will come from the town’s 2024 fund balance accounts, which are town savings accounts.
The full raise will hit in 2025 and will cost the town $27,065 for part-time workers and $243,288 for full-timers. Smyth said those raises will be included in the town’s 2025 operating budget.
Town Board member Dave Bennardo said though the employees who got the raise would have gotten a 10% raise if they received 2% hikes over the last five years, as the union employees did, the board felt a 10% raise at once was too high.
"We also didn’t want to do 2 or 3% and have to come back and give another raise next year, so we settled on 6%," Bennardo said.
Town Board member Sal Ferro agreed with Smyth and Bennardo.
Town Board members Brooke Lupinacci and Theresa Mari did not return calls for comment.
Halesite resident Ellie D’Amico, 75, who attends town board meetings regularly and has been critical of the board over what she says is a lack of transparency, said the town’s departments deserve salary increases. But, she noted, "The raise should be made by merit with a review of department performance, retention and personal performance, accessibility and responsiveness to the residents."
At the same meeting, Smyth announced that an independent audit by PKF O’Connor Davies found a $10.5 million savings across all town funds including the general, highway and refuse for fiscal year 2023.
Smyth said the raises and the savings are not connected because they involve money from different years.
"The accumulated savings will in part be returned to the taxpayers through additional road paving, infrastructure and parks improvements," he said.
Town of Huntington officials gave 6% raises to 43 appointed employees across departments this month.
Town Supervisor Ed Smyth said many of the employees had not gotten a raise since before the pandemic. The increases are being paid for with money found through efficiencies such as moving duties from one department to another and not filling budgeted open positions, officials said.
"These are long overdue raises for people who make the daily operations of the town work," Smyth said.
He said the raises ranged from $69 for a part-time administrative law judge to $4,110 for the town's director of engineering services.
The 6% pay hike represented the consensus of the town board after considering the town’s blue- and white-collar union employees receive 2% raises this year and in 2025, and received their contractual raises during the pandemic, Smyth said.
The board approved the raises 5-0 at its July 9 meeting.
The total cost of the raises for part-timers for the remainder of 2024 is $12,492, and $112,297 for full-time workers. The money will come from the town’s 2024 fund balance accounts, which are town savings accounts.
The full raise will hit in 2025 and will cost the town $27,065 for part-time workers and $243,288 for full-timers. Smyth said those raises will be included in the town’s 2025 operating budget.
Town Board member Dave Bennardo said though the employees who got the raise would have gotten a 10% raise if they received 2% hikes over the last five years, as the union employees did, the board felt a 10% raise at once was too high.
"We also didn’t want to do 2 or 3% and have to come back and give another raise next year, so we settled on 6%," Bennardo said.
Town Board member Sal Ferro agreed with Smyth and Bennardo.
Town Board members Brooke Lupinacci and Theresa Mari did not return calls for comment.
Halesite resident Ellie D’Amico, 75, who attends town board meetings regularly and has been critical of the board over what she says is a lack of transparency, said the town’s departments deserve salary increases. But, she noted, "The raise should be made by merit with a review of department performance, retention and personal performance, accessibility and responsiveness to the residents."
At the same meeting, Smyth announced that an independent audit by PKF O’Connor Davies found a $10.5 million savings across all town funds including the general, highway and refuse for fiscal year 2023.
Smyth said the raises and the savings are not connected because they involve money from different years.
"The accumulated savings will in part be returned to the taxpayers through additional road paving, infrastructure and parks improvements," he said.
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Hot and humid with threat of storms ... Pedestrian struck in North Babylon ... Man dies in house fire ... Hampton Classic
