It seems that in 2007 the district board (or some members of the board) requested a salary comparison survey be compiled by Mountain States Employers Council. The goal of this survey, from my understanding, was to compare the salaries that WHMD is paying to the average salaries paid locally for equivalent job responsibilities.
I am told this salary survey cost the district around $2,000.00.
As you may be aware, this salary survey has been a huge point of contention recently. Members of our community have asked to see it, only to be rebuffed for one reason or another. Finally, at the 19 February 2009 district board meeting I asked the directors to release this report. It has now been released, and is available here (on the official WHMD website).
I have stated this before — this board has to err on the side of transparency wherever possible — in the current environment, even to the extreme. Sending every CORA request to our lawyers is just plain ludicrous–and costs us hefty legal fees. I have asked the directors to review CORA requests before they are sent to the lawyers; if the board votes to release, then no legal opinion is necessary.
I think you will find the survey to be anticlimactic.
UPDATE: I have tried to summarize the results of this survey in the table below.
| WHMD Position | WHMD Salary in 2007 | Average Local Salary | Difference | % Difference |
| Receptionist/Accounting Clerk | $41,200 | $29,534 | $11,666 | 139.50% |
| Billing/Accounts Receivable | $50,000 | $35,051 | $14,949 | 142.64% |
| Water Operator | $51,500 | $40,109 | $11,391 | 128.40% |
| Water Operator | $42,583 | $40,328 | $2,255 | 105.59% |
| Water Operator | $37,100 | $42,189 | ($5,089) | 87.93% |
| Sewer Operator | $51,670 | $42,981 | $8,689 | 120.21% |
| Water Operator | $64,872 | $42,981 | $21,891 | 150.97% |
| Community Center Director | $46,000 | $46,833 | ($833) | 98.22% |
| Operations Manager | $66,750 | $65,610 | $1,140 | 101.73% |
| Controller/Office Manager/CFO | $81,900 | $75,535 | $6,365 | 108.42 % |
According to this table, in 2007 we paid 18% more (averaged) then comparable positions in this area.
Note, however, that this data is significantly out of date. Some of these positions have been eliminated, some combined with others, and some responsibilities changed; however, I’m inclined to say that we still pay more, on average, than comparable in this area.
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