Following a couple months of discussion and a separate work session including department heads, the Washington County Board of Supervisors took action regarding overtime pay for the county ambulance service director.
Ambulance Director Jeremy Peck asked last November to receive compensation for over 180 additional hours he worked beyond his normal duties from September through part of that month as the service had staffing shortages at the time. The board discussed the matter during several meetings in conjunction with a salary increase for Peck as they approved pay increases for all ambulance staff in October in order to retain and attract new employees.
At Tuesday’s meeting the board received a letter from labor attorney Bill Sueppel advising on the matter, stating the county could possibly give Peck additional compensation without having him lose his “exempt” status. Sueppel recommended that the supervisors develop specific criteria to allow this overtime pay so that it can be consistent for all department heads moving forward, though he said Peck losing exempt status and being paid overtime could cause the department’s payroll to increase to unsustainable levels.
A motion to approve the overtime pay at $25 an hour failed 3-2 with Supervisors Stan Stoops, Bob Yoder, and Richard Young voting opposed. Stoops stated that he wasn’t saying Peck doesn’t deserve it, but that it would be setting a precedent for other exempt employees who don’t receive overtime pay. Yoder reflected Stoops’ thoughts, “Like what Stan said I’d have to agree with him quite a bit. Some of this just goes with the territory, it’s not fun, but it goes with the territory. The only other thing I’ve thought about is we did this for a one-time deal. I might be able to do that but then what do the other directors from the other departments do? What do they say?”
The board then approved an ambulance employee policy change to payroll procedures, while tabling action on policies regarding scheduling changes, vacation requests and holidays for full and part time staff. Peck gave a final statement to the board before leaving the meeting, “Every single time the ambulance service does something, we run into a concrete wall. Everybody’s gunning for us, everybody’s pointing their fingers saying, ‘They’re doing this, they’re doing that.’ It’s not right. When are we going to start getting the support? That’s what I ask.”
In other business, the board approved a personnel change request hiring Michael Johnston as a new full-time emergency medical technician to run the ambulance service’s new Basic Life Support truck.