Richland County commissioners reassign pay grades in prosecutor's office; no immediate pay raises

The Richland County Board of Commissioners approved changes to pay grades in the county prosecutor's office during its Sept. 4 meeting.

Commissioner Tony Vero told the board the prosecutor and human resources staff reviewed position scales and recommended reclassifications. "Our prosecutor did a very good job of working with Jenny, in human resources on some pay scales," Vero said. He added the adjustments "will not result in any pay increases for any Richland County residents that are listening right now."

The board voted to move the following positions to the listed pay grades: grand jury specialist to pay grade 5; victim advocate to pay grade 6; trial team secretary to pay grade 5; discovery secretary to pay grade 5; juvenile appellate administrative assistant to pay grade 5; and receptionist to pay grade 3. The motion was made and seconded and approved by the commissioners in attendance.

County Prosecutor Jody Schumacher and HR representative Jenny Phelps were present during the discussion, and County Administrator Andrew Keller was on the dais. Commissioners asked that the changes reflect current salary ranges; Vero said the affected employees are already within the newly assigned ranges.

No additional details about implementation dates, individual salary amounts or budgetary adjustments were provided at the meeting. The board recessed briefly afterward for other executive-session items and said any further formal actions would be taken publicly when appropriate.

Planning and implementation follow standard county personnel procedures and will be administered by the prosecutor's office and HR, according to comments on the record.