Baldwin County Commission Advances Raises for Top Department Directors

Nine of Baldwin County’s top department directors are in line for salary increases after county commissioners agreed to move forward with a round of merit-based raises during a meeting in Bay Minette.

The proposed increases average roughly 8 percent above what the directors were paid in December 2013, with the full package set for a formal vote at the commission’s next meeting. The raises are tied to performance evaluations in which each of the four commissioners scored individual directors on a five-point scale.

The largest percentage increase would go to Ron Cink, the county’s budget director, who has also been serving as interim county administrator since mid-November after the previous administrator’s contract was not renewed. Cink’s salary would rise more than 20 percent under the proposal, reflecting both his budget director duties and a monthly stipend for taking on the additional interim role. County officials noted the arrangement still costs less each month than paying a full-time administrator’s salary.

Several commissioners described some of the increases as overdue rather than exceptional. The county’s longtime building official and its personnel director were both singled out as having been paid below market rates for years relative to their experience and workload, with commissioners saying past pay scales had not kept pace with their growing responsibilities. The county’s solid waste director was cited in similar terms, having moved into an appointed director role without a corresponding salary adjustment.

Smaller increases, generally in the range of 3.5 to 4 percent, were proposed for several other department heads, including the county’s clerk/treasurer, county engineer, information systems director, emergency management director and juvenile detention center director. The county engineer’s position is also partially funded by the state.

Commissioners spoke favorably about Cink’s performance in the dual interim role, with one commissioner suggesting he could continue serving in that capacity for the time being rather than the county immediately searching for a permanent replacement. Cink, who has held the budget director post for several years, told commissioners he was still weighing whether he wanted the administrator position on a long-term basis, saying he intended to give the arrangement his full effort for as long as it was needed.

The raises are separate from a broader cost-of-living adjustment already built into the county’s fiscal year budget, which includes a 1 percent increase for general county employees as well as sworn and non-sworn Sheriff’s Office personnel starting in the spring. County officials said the director-level raises fit within the budget approved when the fiscal year began in October.

Merit raises versus cost-of-living adjustments

The director raises and the employee-wide increase work differently. A cost-of-living adjustment is an across-the-board percentage increase meant to help pay keep pace with rising prices, applied to every eligible employee regardless of performance. Merit raises like the ones proposed for the directors are set individually and tied to performance reviews, which is why commissioners scored each director before settling on the amounts.

Bay Minette, where the meeting was held, has been Baldwin County’s seat of government since 1901, when the county seat was moved there from Daphne.