PRINCETON - Gibson County Council adopted next year's county employee salary ordinance 5-2 in special session Friday morning, after adopting the budget for 2010 earlier in the week by the same vote.

Cecil "Bob" Allen and W.W. George voted against adopting the ordinance, which contains a provision that requires employees to pay about 10 percent of their health insurance coverage ($100 a month for family or individual coverage this year).

To offset the measure, the council will pay a one-time $1,200 bonus in the spring of 2010 to employees.

Somerville resident Steve Bottoms appealed Friday to members not to make employees pay the increased health insurance contribution. Bottoms said he's been told some employees would lose as much as $2,000 even with the $1,200 bonus. "As a taxpayer of this county, I don't want to see the workers have to take a cut," he told the board.

Council president Tony Wolfe told Bottoms the impact of the increased contribution and the bonus is unique to each employee, depending on their payroll withholdings.

Councilman Craig Pflug said an employee claiming no exemptions who gets the $1,200 bonus will see a net increase of $937 for the year, about $78.15 in monthly income that wouldn't have had if the bonus wasn't offered.

"They're actually $10 a month better off than they were without the bonus," he said.

County employees have argued that their health insurance benefits shouldn't be cut because they were guaranteed in lieu of raises in past years.

Pflug said it's not a good thing to increase their contribution to their health benefits, "but we are in a different period of time in our economy."

"I'm not saying it's fair, but it's just the way it is," he added.

Oakland City resident Bill Miller pointed out that other local public sector employees (schools, city, etc.) have health benefits which haven't been cut, including Pflug's wife.

Responding to an employee's appeal to make a distinction between the individual and family health insurance contribution, Wolfe said the county pays the same ($12,818 per employee per year) for family or individual coverage.

He encouraged employees to work with county commissioners to come up with a more equitable health benefit package.

And, Wolfe repeated an idea he introduced earlier this summer: Paying employees a larger bonus not to take the county health plan if they have access to other health care benefits through their spouse.

The 2010 pay ordinance maintains a freeze on raises, but salaries for sheriff's department and jail employees look higher, after the council rolled holiday pay for those positions into the salary to reflect what is actually paid.

It also makes provisions for a new lower base pay for new hires.

The ordinance also reflects pay cuts the council and county commissioners adopted for themselves. The three commissioners each make $21,000 next year and the seven council members each make $8,000. Commissioners and council members who have the county health insurance benefits will also pay the increased contribution, but won't get the bonus.

Elected office-holders such as the treasurer, auditor, clerk and recorder make $37,520 per year. Their first deputies make $29,912 and second deputies make $29,114 next year. Part-time help can be hired at $9 per hour, according to the ordinance. The county surveyor, who is licensed, is paid $40,000 per year and the coroner is paid $13,770 a year.

In the sheriff's department, the sheriff is paid $90,000, his chief deputy salary is $38,633, captains are paid $37,783, detective sergeants $36,928, corporals are paid $36,682, and patrolmen are paid $36,284.

Jail matrons and officers make between $36,284 and $32,031. Dispatchers make between $32,655 and $31,248, depending on their responsibilities.

Appointed department heads, such as the veterans service officer, weights and measures inspector, and emergency management agency, make between $30,464 and $31,133.

The county prosecutor and judges are paid by the state. Court support staff pay ranges from $26,581 to $54,037, and the prosecutor's support staff ranges from $26,578 to $29,912.

In the ambulance service, the supervisor is paid $42,658. Paramedics make $16.73 per hour and emergency medical technicians are paid $15.20 per hour.

The highway superintendent makes $37,417 per year and office support staff makes between $29,912 to $30,882. Highway department positions range in pay from $14.33 per hour to $15.55 per hour.