RICHMOND, Va. -- Richmond Mayor Dwight Jones gave his Press Secretary and Senior Assistant 18 and 17 percent pay raises, respectively, over the past year. The raises are not sitting well with some of Richmond’s veteran police officers -- who would receive a less than one percent raise under the Mayor’s proposed budget.
"There needs to be an explanation, we need to know what can we do to deserve that kind of raise," Brad Nixon with the Richmond Coalition of Police, said after he learned about the raises.
The mayor tried last year to move those two employees, along with his Senior Policy Advisor, into Senior Executive Status, which would have increased their pay range and retirement compensation, but he could not get enough support on Richmond City Council.
Instead, he gave Press Secretary Tammy Hawley an 18 percent salary bump that increased her pay from $105,060 to $123,971 annually. He also gave his Senior Assistant Cheryl Ivey Green a 17 percent salary bump that increased her pay from $82,110 to $96,198 annually.
Hawley declined our request for an interview, but did send the following statement about the raises:
The fact that this classification change has not been made leaves the Press Secretary and the other position you noted without the same retirement benefits and salary benefits that others at the executive level enjoy. The raises that were granted instead remain within the established salary ranges for our positions and are in line with salaries for comparable positions. These positions still do not realize the same level of retirement and other benefits that others serving in executive level positions are entitled to.
Hawley also highlighted a list compiled a few years ago, which showed Alexandria, Fairfax and Chesterfield pay their communications directors thousands more than Richmond paid her. She also said the Mayor’s Senior Assistant is “on when the Mayor is on, 24/7.”
When asked about the raise, City Council Member Charles Samuels said “hard work deserves credit.”
Samuels added that the Mayor clearly “felt certain folks deserved something extra and he found a way to make it happen,” which he said the city should do for other employees as well.
"It's my opinion that the city police officers, teachers, and firefighters, and our schools also deserve something, and I believe if there is a will there is a way, we can find it," Samuels said.
Richmond City Council members have proposed amendments to the Mayor’s budget proposal, which will be discussed next Monday. New recruits to the Richmond Police Department are set to get an increase of 12 percent while veterans officers are set to receive a raise of less than one percent.
The Richmond Coalition of Police said that meant new officers will be making nearly the same as officers with as much as 10-years experience and that morale right now was low.
Richmond City Council leaders said that they simply do not have the resources to give everyone an equivalent raise. As of now they say they plan on increasing police pay further next year.
