New Allegheny County executive announces wage increases, perks for some employees

ALLEGHENY COUNTY, Pa. — Pay raises and other perks are coming to many Allegheny County employees in 2024.

Amid her first full week on the job, County Executive Sara Innamorato, a Democrat, announced pay hikes for the county’s non-union workers.

“I ran for office so that we could get things done in this county,” she said during a press conference on Wednesday.

In 2024, part-time employees will see their hourly base increase from $12 per hour to $15. Full-time staff members will make at least $18 hourly, a rate that will increase to at least $22 by the year 2027.

The administration told reporters that this applies to a few hundred full-time staff members and a few dozen part-timers.

Starting employees will also go from receiving five days of paid vacation annually to three weeks. Vacation time will increase to four weeks after five years of service. Employees will then gain an additional day per year after a decade of service, maxing out at five weeks.

Additionally, starting employees will no longer have to wait to take sick time or parental leave.

“Hiring is competitive and the county cannot compete if we are not recognizing the work-life balance that people need to be successful,” she said.

Innamorato, surrounded by supporters, further pledged to ensure that union members get their share come time for collective bargaining. She told reporters that the wage increase has “set, on our own terms, a higher floor for them to bargain from.”

Her announcement comes not long after her predecessor, Rich Fitzgerald, vetoed a county council proposal to raise the minimum wage similarly. That plan, however, included both non-union and union workers.

>> Allegheny County Council votes to override Fitzgerald’s veto of minimum wage increase

Council ended up overriding Fitzgerald’s veto, who took the matter to court. A judge, in December, sided with Fitzgerald as he argued that council didn’t have the authority to unilaterally raise all wages.

According to court documents, Fitzgerald had argued that the plan violated the collective bargaining process, and that the “‘compression’ effect on the rest of the payroll is estimated to cost $30 million, leading to significant property tax increases for residents.”

Channel 11 asked Innamorato if her plan would result in a cost to taxpayers, to which she replied “currently, in 2024, there’s no budgetary impact.”

When asked about the future cost, Innamorato couldn’t provide a figure, but noted her admiration will be “working with our budget team to understand what the fiscal impact is.”

She argued that the wage increases will lead to a “cost savings” by way of “employee retention.”

Allegheny County Council Member-at-Large Sam DeMarco, a Republican, took issue with her remarks.

“Telling people that she’ll check with her budget officials to determine the cost of this new policy is fiscally backwards,” he said. “We need to know what something’s going to cost before we start spending.”

In a press release, DeMarco further noted that he is “especially alarmed” by Innamorato’s statements regarding how the wage increases will provide unions with a higher floor from which they can bargain.

“As fiscal steward of the county, the executive’s obligation is to the taxpayers,” he said. “Sending a signal that she intends to increase costs without first assessing the budget implications could lead to massive tax increases as well as a business slowdown as job-creators find themselves competing with government in terms of salaries.”

Innamorato said that there are 1000 open county positions currently.

Her plan also eliminates the requirement for a pre-employment drug test, unless in instances where the test is required by regulations, for instance for county police hiring.

She further stated that her administration will be working to review where “burdensome” degree requirements can be removed for employment.

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