Champlin made some tough choices to balance its 2009 budget in a tight economy, including combining a few jobs, slightly increasing property taxes and cutting four clerical workers' hours.
The City Council also chose to approve "market adjustment" raises totaling more than $15,000 for eight of the city's highest-paid staff. They are the city administrator, police chief, deputy chief, the computer system manager and four police sergeants.
Some employees and a former council member say it's unfair to give raises to well-paid staff while cutting the work week of lower-earning clerks, all women, by one day. One of the clerks, who has since resigned, claims it shows sex discrimination. The eight who received raises are all men, and each will earn more than $79,000 this year.
City officials denied her allegation and noted the four clerks retained full-time health benefits and no one was laid off. Council members said such adjustment raises are routinely made in its annual budget process for employees whose pay is below that of comparable metro area city jobs. The raises keep talented staff from going elsewhere, they said.
"We are doing what's best for the city and taxpayers," said Mayor Mark Uglem. "We regret we had to take other steps in the other positions."
The positions given a cut in hours were a payroll clerk, an engineering secretary, a utility billing clerk and City Clerk Roberta Carlotti, who had no comment. The four clerks will earn between $19,000 and $56,000 this year.
But payroll clerk Brenda Cunningham, who resigned in January, said she sent a memo about unequal pay treatment to city officials in December after the 2009 budget was adopted.
Cunningham quit because "I personally couldn't handle it anymore." She said "the citizens of Champlin should know that female employees' hours were being cut while top male employees were getting more than the regular cost-of-living raise."