By Carl Blankenship
carl.blankenship@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY — The Rowan-Salisbury Schools Board of Education will receive an update on the results of a pay study commissioned for classified employees during its Monday meeting.

The meeting will be held virtually. It will begin at 4:30 p.m. and can be viewed live at vimeo.com/rssboe. Anyone who wants to participate in the public comment period at the meeting must register by 3 p.m. on Monday by emailing board clerk Sonya Mulkey at mulkeysh@rss.k12.nc.us.

The pay study was completed earlier this year by the firm HIL Consultants. It provided updated salary grades and created 30-step pay scales based on comparable pay in the market.

The district’s human resources department looked at the recommendations in the study and made adjustments based on changes made by neighboring districts this summer, according to Monday’s agenda documents.

If the state passes a draft budget setting the minimum wage for state employees to $13, that would increase the district’s current minimum pay of $11.66.

New pay scales were set to make the lowest paid position $13 per hour based on that potential bump.

That increase alone would bump up the district’s current minimum of $11.66 per hour for state-funded employees. Most classified positions, which include nutrition staff and bus drivers, are funded through state money.

RSS Chief Financial Officer Carol Herndon will describe a likely scenario for the district to implement the study over the course of several years.

Herndon and Chief Human Resources Officer Jill Hall-Freeman will walk the board through the district’s next steps, including considering funding options and setting priority for implementation in the 2021-2022 fiscal year.

In other agenda items:

• The board will discuss appointing someone to the vacant seat on the board. The board interviewed Lynn Marsh and Travis Billings publicly two weeks ago. The board can appoint someone to the seat vacated by Susan Cox in October until the general election next year.

• The board will consider extending its lease to Rowan County to use parking space at the district’s bus garage for Rowan Transit vehicles. The requested extension runs through June 30, 2024.

• The board will revisit its COVID-19 policies. The board is required to review mask requirements every 30 days. The district has seen a sharp drop off in quarantines and positive cases in the weeks since implementing masks.