Finance and Personnel Committee

FINANCE AND PERSONNEL COMMITTEE A meeting of the Finance and Personnel Committee was called to order by Chair Penterman on Monday, December 1, 2025, at 6:17 pm. Members present: Mayor Penterman, Antoine, DeCoster, Eggleston, Moore, and Schumacher. Also present: Ald. Kilgas, Ald. Thiele, Mayor Penterman, Attorney Greenwood, DPW/Eng. Neumeier, Com. Enrich. and Rec. Director Vosters, Fire Chief Carrel, HR Director Hodge, Street Superintendent Van Gompel, Street Foreman Nelson, and interested citizens. 1. Correspondence. a. Email from Roy Van Zeeland on Longevity Pay. Motion by Moore, seconded Antoine to receive and place on file the email from Roy Van Zeeland on longevity pay. All members voted aye. Motion carried. b. Email from John Neumeier on Longevity Pay. Motion by Antoine, seconded Moore to receive and place on file the email from John Neumeier on longevity pay. All members voted aye. Motion carried. c. Email from Melanie Knott on Overtime and Longevity Pay. Motion by Moore, seconded DeCoster to receive and place on file the email from Melanie Knott on overtime and longevity pay. All members voted aye. Motion carried. 2. Discussion Topics. a. Full-time backfill for retirement- Police Department. Sgt. Raether has submitted official notice for retirement, effective 3/1/2026. With the 2025 Staffing Plan, it was approved to utilize a +1 method to stay ahead of the upcoming retirements that were already anticipated to occur beginning in 2026 – 2030. Motion by Moore, seconded by Schumacher, to authorize staff to recruit and hire to fill the vacancy. All members voted aye. Motion carried. b. Full-time backfill for retirement- Street Department. Dean Meyer has submitted official notice for retirement, effective 2/17/2026. Motion by Eggleston, seconded by DeCoster, to authorize staff to recruit and hire to fill the vacancy of Laborer. All members voted aye. Motion carried. c. Employee Handbook Changes. The Employee Handbook was last updated and approved for adoption on 10/2/2023. HR Director Hodge presented the changes which include overtime, longevity, vacation, holidays, and hours of work. Many changes are due to staying in regulation with the One Big Beautiful Bill. Hodge explained how we are only changing what we are regulatorily required to change so that we properly report for 2026 earnings. Language changes in the handbook are to allow for flexibility in changing current practices in order to be compliant without any delays in approval. Motion by Moore, seconded by Antoine to approve the employee handbook changes presented by HR. All members voted aye. Motion carried. d. Longevity Discussion. The Employee Longevity program was discontinued as part of the 2023-2024 Compensation Administration restructuring. Employee Longevity pay was last paid out near year-end of 2024 for years of service through 2024 for active employees at that time, not subject to collective bargaining. Funds budgeted for 2025 were allocated to the Merit Incentive program created under the 2023-2024 Compensation Plan restructuring proposal. Merit Incentive nominations were submitted in the second half of 2024, and then nomination forms underwent a committee review in late 2024-early 2025. It was deemed by the review committee that the program had significant flaws and should be reevaluated for overall procedure. No awards were issued because of the review committee’s decision. Motion by Moore, seconded by Antoine to pay longevity for 2025 for those who have earned it in the amount of approximately $19,000. All members voted aye. Motion carried. e. 2026 Pay Schedule and Position Classification. The 2026 Pay Grade Schedule represents a 2.6-3.5% schedule adjustment as presented in the 2026 budget information, along with a correction to the step increments to ensure all have a 2.25% upward increase. The 2026 Seasonal Positions and Pay Rate represent the consolidation of several Recreation Department titles as presented on 8/18/2025, as well as pay rates with other positions receiving the schedule change of 3.5%. New positions have been added in the 2026 budget which include a Human Resources Coordinator, Assistant Library Director, Parks Foreman, and converting the Accounts Payable position from part-time to full-time. Alder Moore mentioned that the Planning and Naturalist intern positions should be $15/hour minimum. Motion by Moore, seconded by Eggleston approve the 2026 pay grade schedule as presented. All members voted aye. Motion carried. Motion by Moore, seconded by Schumacher to approve the 2026 job titles and grade classifications. All members voted aye. Motion carried. Motion by Moore, seconded by to Schumacher to approve posting to fill vacancies for the newly created positions with the People Operation Plan (POP) and 2026 budget: a. Human Resources Coordinator full- time b. Assistant Library Director full-time 102 Item 2.e. c. Parks Foreman full-time d. Conversion of the Accounts Payable position to full-time. All members voted aye. Motion carried. Motion by Moore, seconded by Schumacher to approve the 2026 seasonal positions as presented with the changes for the interns of Planning, Naturalist, and Community Enrichment to also be $17/hour. All members voted aye. Motion carried. 3. Adjourn. Motion by Antoine, seconded DeCoster to adjourn. All members voted aye. Motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 7:38 pm. Kayla Nessmann, Clerk