Saltarelli Catches Flak for Raising Staff’s Pay : Politics: New supervisor cites parity as reason for move. It comes as most O.C. workers cope with a wage freeze.

Despite a freeze on pay raises for most employees of Orange County’s bankrupt government, Gov. Pete Wilson’s new appointee to the Board of Supervisors ordered up raises for every member of his personal staff just weeks after taking office, officials confirmed Tuesday.

Supervisor Don Saltarelli defended the raises for his six female employees, saying they were significantly underpaid and overworked compared to employees in similar positions in other board offices.

“They have proven their competence to me,” said Saltarelli, who inherited his staff from former Supervisor Gaddi H. Vasquez, who resigned from office in September.

“I wanted to bring them into parity with other board offices and pay them a competitive wage,” Saltarelli said.

Furthermore, Saltarelli said three of his employees had received more lucrative offers to work elsewhere and he felt he needed their experience and expertise in county government to accomplish his goals as he completes Vasquez’s term in office, which expires in December, 1996.

Saltarelli said he is already having to make do with two staffers fewer than Vasquez had when he was in office. He said the raises will be paid from his existing budget and come from the money that would have gone to the two employees who left the office.

But Saltarelli’s explanations didn’t sit well with some county activists and government observers who have repeatedly complained that county workers are overpaid.

“It’s wrong giving pay raises when we’re still in bankruptcy,” said Carole Walters, a member of the anti-tax group Committees of Correspondence. “Apparently he doesn’t care about saving taxpayer money. He comes in there and hands out raises like a big shot. He needs to be put out of office.”

Bruce Whitaker, another member of the group, said he too was disappointed by the new supervisor’s action.

“I didn’t think the county has the money to raise salaries,” he said. “We’re still in a bankruptcy, aren’t we?”

According to county personnel records, Saltarelli’s staffers were given salary raises ranging from 2.6% to 39%. Despite the raises, however, the salaries of his staff are well within the range of the pay given to employees in other board offices.

Saltarelli’s top staffer makes $50,960 a year, which is about the average salary for executive assistants in other board offices. Jan Walden, the director of personnel, said Saltarelli’s employees do not make exorbitant salaries when compared to their colleagues in other offices.

Walden said the range for executive assistants is from $38,480 to $68,432. Before the raises, one of Saltarelli’s executive assistants made $27,700.

Moreover, unlike other board members, Saltarelli does not employ a chief of staff--which is generally the highest compensated employee on a supervisor’s staff.

Because the employees of supervisors serve at the discretion of the supervisors and are not contract employees, the countywide freeze on pay raises does not apply to Saltarelli’s workers, Walden said.

Some county observers, however, thought Saltarelli was taking advantage of a technicality and was not abiding by the spirit of the county’s wage-freeze policy, which was imposed in the wake of the Dec. 6 bankruptcy.

“I don’t want to start anything with Mr. Saltarelli, but I’m surprised that he did this,” said John H. Sawyer, general manager of the Orange County Employees Assn. “I think he should follow the practices for all employees.”

Sawyer added, however, that if Saltarelli’s staff can get raises, the rest of the county’s 15,000 work force should also get pay hikes.

“His reasoning should apply to all employees equally,” Sawyer said.

Up on the fifth floor of the Hall of Administration, where the supervisors have their offices, there were not many complaints about Saltarelli’s action.

“Good for him,” said one high level official, who asked not to be identified.

“They deserve a raise,” said another county staffer. “Vasquez was notorious for being a cheapskate. These people should have raises.”

Saltarelli’s chief press spokeswoman Barbara Daly declined to discuss her raise when contacted Tuesday. Other supervisors could not be reached for comment late Tuesday.

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Saltarelli’s Rising Tide

Pay raises granted his personal staff by new Supervisor Don Saltarelli will cost the county more than $30,000 per year. Former and new rates are per hour, weekly and annual increases based on 40 hours per week and 52 weeks per year:

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Former New Pct. Weekly Annual rate rate chg. increase increase Executive assistant $17.66 $24.50 39 $273.60 $14,227.20 Executive assistant $13.34 $18.50 39 $206.40 $10,732.80 Executive aide* $15.63 $17.00 9 $54.80 $2,849.60 Secretary $16.87 $17.31 3 $17.60 $915.20 Secretary $13.33 $13.67 3 $13.60 $707.20 Extra help employee** $8.94 $10.14 13 $48.00 $2,496.00 Total $85.77 $101.12 18 $614.00 $31,928.00

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* Promoted to executive assistant

** Promoted to executive aide

Source: Orange County personnel office

Researched by MATT LAIT / Los Angeles Times