City of Sioux Falls HR Director blows smoke

Of course, it is NO surprise that Bill Da’Toole is trying to downplay the corporate like pay structure of city management and directors;

The city says it hires independent consultants every eight to 10 years to make sure it’s recruiting top talent. The city doesn’t want to lose employees to the private sector.

What is NOT mentioned is that those consultants study the wages of the minions in city government (union employees). They do NO studies on director or upper management (non-union) salaries. But somehow Bill tries to tie that study into upper management;

“We’re not Microsoft,” said the city’s human resources director, Bill O’Toole. “We can’t pay at the very top. We’ve gotten very, very practical at how we do this, and we think we do a very good job.”

First off, while the city has many talented employees, trust me, no one in upper management is Microsoft material. Secondly, Microsoft is a private, for profit corporation that in no way runs like a city. So yes Bill, the city isn’t Microsoft, so why are some directors making corporate like executive wages?

He says it isn’t so. Oh really?

So, how do salaries vary over time?

“Every position has a minimum and a maximum,  whether it’s a city director or somebody governed by one of the labor contracts,” said O’Toole.

With good job performance, there are typically nine steps to get from that minimum to that maximum.

“For the first five steps, you’re eligible for a merit increase annually,” said O’Toole. “Between steps five through nine, it’s every 24 months.”

That’s interesting, because many NEW directors get hired at the SAME amount as their predecessor was getting paid when they left the position. It has happened numerous times. When the last city clerk left after around 20 years of service, the new Clerk got her outgoing salary. He isn’t a certified city clerk either.

The city seems to pay their directors like the corporate world; not based on experience, but who you know, not what you know.