Staff report
Sheriff George Wilhelm is asking the county to grant him vacation and sick days going back 11 years.
Wilhelm made the request in a letter to County Manager Gary Page and other county officials.
Page said Tuesday that he plans to check into the request and discuss it with county commissioners.
If granted sick time and vacation time for more than a decade, it would add more than one year to his retirement benefits.
Over the past several months, Wilhelm has talked with county officials about retiring and getting the free health insurance benefit. At this point he apparently is not eligible.
In his letter, Wilhelm noted that neither the sheriff nor the register of deeds is given sick days or vacation days.
“… I believe the county should have to compensate the sheriff in the same way as his employees. That is to grant the sheriff sick and vacation days to accrue for his retirement. This is a benefit being denied to the sheriff and register of deeds in Rowan County. There is no reason why this can’t be done,” Wilhelm wrote. “I am officially requesting that the sheriff and register of deeds be given the same benefits as other department heads in Rowan County.
“I am also officially requesting that I be given the days owned me retroactive to December of 1998,” Wilhelm wrote.
He became sheriff in December 1998.
He went on to ask for details on the county policy regarding the benefits package for the sheriff and register of deeds. “We should be reasonably compensated just as other county paid personnel,” he wrote.
Wilhelm’s current annual salary is $103,154.