Columbus City budget officials say a 2% pay increase approved by the City Council is receiving mixed feelings from city employees. Municipal workers haven’t received a raise since 2008. Columbus Budget Coordinator Oakel Hardy says many people are unsure how to feel about the new measure.
“Well, it’s like everything else, there’s you know some people are happy with it,” he said. “Some people thought it should be more. I think generally it has been well received.”
Columbus Fire Department Sergeant Jeff Cain says 4% would have been great but not realistic because of the condition of the economy. Cain says he wasn’t expecting any raise so he is satisfied with the decision.
“I’m more than happy with 2 % raise,” he said. “I don’t want anybody to think that we don’t appreciate it because we do. It’s actually a pretty nice surprise because I was pretty sure we weren’t going to get a raise again this year.”
Coordinator Hardy says analysis of city finances proved that an increase wouldn’t be possible in 2012 and 2013, so 2011 seemed like the right time to do it.
