Stockton workers to have job reviews

Borough employees will be getting a 3 percent raise, their last one before new performance evaluations are required.

By: Linda Seida
   STOCKTON — Borough employees are getting a 3 percent raise thanks to the passage of a salary and wage ordinance May 15, but it could be the last time they get any increase without first undergoing a performance evaluation.
   If a performance review policy now under consideration by the Borough Council is instituted, official job descriptions for the borough’s part-time employees would have to be written first so the proposed evaluations could be made in conjunction with future salary adjustments.
   Under the recently enacted salary ordinance, Mayor Gregg Rackin will receive $1,618 per year while members of the council will receive $1,118 per year. Borough Clerk Kim Franklin will receive $10,112, while her assistant Betsy Ohler will receive $7,035.
   Municipal Finance Officer Elaine Vanselous will receive $9,490. Tax assessor Richard Vinchur will get $4,305. Tax Collector Carol Hettman will get $7,010.
   Robert Ent will receive $5,453 for his post as water operator, and $10,442 as sewer operator. Mr. Ent also might receive $2,000 as supervisor of special projects if he decides to accept the newly created position, according to Council President Andrew Giannattasio.
   "Salaries are reviewed every year. We try to at least compensate them fairly for the work they put in," said Mr. Giannattasio, who also chairs the Finance Committee.
   "Everybody’s behind it now," he said of the idea of starting performance evaluations. "The problem is that Stockton doesn’t even have what you would call job descriptions."
   Job descriptions would be needed before performance evaluations could be started.
   "The town has grown in the past 20 years. It probably wasn’t necessary back then," Mr. Giannattasio said of job descriptions. "We’re at a place now where it’s become necessary."
   A Personnel Committee, set up to institute these changes, will consist of Mr. Giannattasio, Councilwoman Constance Bassett and Councilman Neal Esposito.
   In a small borough like Stockton, a job’s duties sometimes blur between what is necessary and required, and what is volunteered.
   "Some of this stuff they do out of the goodness of their hearts. Some of this stuff they do because we ask them to," Mr. Giannattasio said.
   And if an employee were to leave, making it necessary for the borough to fill that position with a new hire, a job description would help in that regard.
   Borough officials, however, are hoping none of Stockton’s employees, who are all part time, will move on.
   "Be very, very clear: We have excellent employees, and they go well beyond the call of duty. They work very hard," said Mayor Rackin. "We have good people, and I think they’re doing a great job."
   He added, "I felt that we need to really look at the structure and function of our borough organizationally. We need to examine what we expect from our employees, and work to improve realizing those expectations. We need to provide incentives and rewards based on performance. Without those, I don’t think we’re being fair to taxpayers or employees."
   Instituting performance evaluations and setting up job descriptions will be tasks the borough needs to tackle in coming months.
   "These are gradual processes," the mayor said. "It doesn’t happen overnight. But you need to have something you are striving for."