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In response to a presentation by the Gilford Budget Committee of their analysis of municipal wage information, the Gilford Board of Selectmen would like to clarify some of the information that has been misconstrued on websites and in the newspaper. We want our taxpayers to be accurately informed.
The data that was presented is the result of many hours of work and was presented in a professional and informative manner. Unfortunately, it has led to inaccurate conclusions and determinations. The basis of the information was a comparison of Gilford’s pay scales with 32 towns with a resident population of 5,000 – 9,999 people. These were the 32 towns who responded to the Local Government Center’s 2005 survey. When your Board of Selectmen prepares research to verify the effectiveness of our pay scales, they carefully consider the towns to be used in comparisons. Many factors are taken into consideration and year round resident population is only one of them. There are many other criteria that reflect similarities and differences amongst towns, which should be considered. Some of
these are real estate values, the service population that the Town is required to serve, what level of municipal services are offered (and expected), municipal facilities, other recreational facilities, and the demographics of the taxpayer base. We also must consider the surrounding communities and state agencies that compete for the local labor pool. Gilford’s population swells during weekends, as well as during the summer months, May until September.
When a comparison of “comparable” municipalities is done, as was done two years ago, Gilford’s pay scale was set exactly in the middle range and we expect that it has not moved much since then. Where an individual employee falls within their pay range is a matter of performance, as determined by an annual evaluation process. The suggestion that all Town employees are at the top of their scale is not accurate.
The Board of Selectmen is acutely aware of the price of providing highly skilled and dedicated employees to serve the people of this Town and their “guests”. We have implemented several significant policy changes in response to these escalating costs and we intend to continue balancing the price tag with the quality of service, professionalism, and reliability that the Town of Gilford expects and receives from its municipal employees.
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