Cape city manager approved for raise

Because of a revenue shortfall, most Cape Girardeau city employees will receive a $600 one-time payment Dec. 26 to supplement their regular salaries instead of scheduled pay raises.

A separate pay plan was recently announced for lower-ranking members of the police department, with officers at the pay grade of sergeant and below also receiving a 1 percent pay increase Jan. 1, an additional 1 percent increase July 1 and a step increase, totaling about 2 percent, on the anniversary of their hiring date.

But the Cape Girardeau City Council, acting in October, approved a 4 percent raise for city manager Doug Leslie. The action came after the council offered Leslie an 8 percent raise, which he turned down, suggesting the lower amount, Mayor Jay Knudtson said.

Before the increase, Leslie was paid $120,000 a year. His pay is now $124,800 annually.

Some city worker groups, especially firefighters, are upset at what they view as unequal treatment. Dean Lynn, president of the Cape Girardeau Firefighter Association, declined to comment until he sees additional information from the city.

Knudtson, when asked about Leslie's salary increase, said "that is the fire pseudo-union that is pouting" and called the pay matter "an internal issue."

Making the decision

Leslie's increase, both Knudtson and Leslie said, should be viewed in the context of what rank-and-file city employees received in the 12 months before the council decision. Over that time, they said, most city workers had received at least a 2 percent cost of living increase Jan. 1 and a step increase of about 2 percent on the anniversary date of their hiring or most recent promotion.

When the council made its decision, Leslie had already announced there would be no step increases for city workers this year. And revenue receipts were stagnant, giving city leaders an indication the cost of living raise generally provided Jan. 1 would be difficult to deliver.

"He was deserving of that raise," Knudtson said of the 8 percent offered.

The increase was justified by a comparison of Leslie's pay to that given to city managers in the group of 12 small-sized to medium-sized cities Cape Girardeau uses as a peer group, Knudtson said. Those towns include Columbia, Mo., Paducah, Ky., Carbondale, Ill., Sikeston and Joplin, Mo. In Columbia, the city manager makes $147,800 annually. In Ballwin, Mo., the pay is $140,000 and in Carbondale, the pay is $121,000, Knudtson said.

Leslie's reaction to the offer was unexpected, Knudtson said. "He said, 'I am respectfully declining the offer of 8 percent. I will accept 4 percent, because in my heart I feel that this is the same as what other employees got."

The action takes the measure of Leslie's value to the city, Knudtson said. "This wasn't an attempt to make himself look better in light of what was coming," he said. "It really speaks to the quality of that decision, the humbleness of that decision."

Setting pay

Leslie is one of two city employees who have their pay set directly by the council. The other is the city's municipal judge. Unlike the judge, Leslie works without a contract and may be dismissed at any time. Before taking his current job, Leslie was director of public works.

When the extra salary increases for police officers was reported, Leslie has said that when his next evaluation is due, the council should not give him a raise unless city workers generally are receiving pay increases.

The pay raise approved this fall, he said, should be in the context of how employees were treated in the year that ended June 30. Leslie receives one evaluation, and one increase, each year, while many receive two pay increases.

"I note that because you have these different anniversary dates," he said. "The freeze did not take place until July 1, and somehow you have to put it in a time frame. A number of employees received" step increases "just prior to July 1."

Members of the city council contacted for this report said Leslie's position, because of its wide-ranging responsibilities, should be considered separate from other city jobs. The council also needs to keep a competitive pay scale for that top job as well, they said.

"When he leaves, we want to get a good person," said Charlie Herbst, Ward 2 councilman and Mayor pro tem.

Turning down the larger raise "says a lot for Doug's integrity," Herbst added.

Ward 6 Councilwoman Marcia Ritter said Leslie has not tried to set himself apart from the rest of the city staff, although she added it is appropriate to do so.

"I am very respectful of Doug Leslie," Ritter said. "He is in a different category but he has tried to do what is fair for the employees and put himself in the same bracket."

Councilwoman Debra Tracy of Ward 3 said she views the grumbling over pay as "a family disagreement." His decision to turn down a larger raise, she said, shows Leslie's sense of fairness.

"We have tried to strike a balance in all of those areas as we have made comparisons to other like cities and responsibilities," she said. "I have felt comfortable with the process on both ends and have been involved in it."

rkeller@semissourian.com

388-3642

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