September 2020 - Parks & Recreation - 48

M I N I M U M WAG E

Equity in wages was a concern
for multiple departments described
below. As we readjust to the future
of our industry, we will need to
keep wage equity a priority when
rebuilding our departments and
structure.

Changing Fees to Manage
Budgets in Oregon
In 2015, the Tualatin Hills Park and
Recreation District in Oregon was
facing a minimum wage increase
from $12 to $15 an hour, resulting
in a budget impact of $500,000 to
$2.7 million, depending on which
rate garnered approval. The lower rate and budget impact would
result in minimal changes to the
department's rate chart, while the
higher number resulted in a more
drastic adjustment.

The Rockford Park District
in Illinois was expecting an
increase of the minimum wage
to $10, resulting in a budgetary
impact of $1 million.
Eligible employees were split between two groups, with program
supervisors making up 85 percent
of the workforce and maintenance
workers comprising the remaining
15 percent. The district managed this
by adjusting fees to cover 75 percent
of program costs and cutting back on
their number of offerings to offset the
budget impact. At the time, the district had around 3,000 offerings per
year and no tax increase had been
discussed. But, due to a $100 million
bond measure that passed in 2008
and a subsequent climate poll, it was
determined that the public was favorable to the option.
Aisha Panas, director of park and
recreation services, along with her
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Parks & Recreation

Tualatin colleagues, Keith Hobson
and Katherine Stokke, provided an
update from 2015 and offered insight
on how the district was handling a
law passed in 2016 that would increase the minimum wage to $14.75
by 2022 with annual adjustments following based on the U.S. Bureau of
Labor Statistics' Consumer Price Index, with Portland, Oregon, metropolitan area coming in $1.25 higher
than the other areas in the state.
To address these increases, staff
have been provided with augmented
expenditure targets of 2.5 percent to
3 percent a year to pay applicable positions the minimum wage. This includes updating their class fee structure using a cost recovery model.
Panas reports this approach has been
successful and the restructuring of
fees has resulted in minimal impact
on operations. Next steps include
addressing compression, which results when differences in pay do not
reflect the skills, experience, level or
seniority between two employees,
along with the next group of employees impacted, which includes
lifeguards and other certified staff.

Maintaining Balance
in Illinois
In the Midwest, the McHenry County Conservation District in Woodstock, Illinois, was already preparing
for the 2015 increase by implementing merit raises - so, at most, the
2015 increase would amount to a
$1.50 raise, bringing the minimum
wage up to $10 per hour. Although
the district had planned for an increase, adjustments still would be
needed. Human Resources Manager Jenny Heider predicted a hiring
freeze, minor cuts to seasonal staff
and deferred maintenance resulting
in an impact to programs and park
appearance. In a follow-up interview with Heider in 2020, she re-

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ported that managers were able to
find room in their budgets so staff
would not need to be reduced nor
fees raised. Heider attributed this
success to her agency's yearly merit
increases, which meant that when
the minimum wage was increased, it
didn't have a negative impact and adjustments were made without a loss
in service. She reported they have
since increased their minimum wage
to $11 per hour. In response to a new
Illinois law raising the minimum
wage to $15 an hour by 2024, they
plan to continue to implement incremental raises along the way to reach
this goal. At this time, an increase to
taxes is not an option, so funds must
be made up operationally.
The Rockford Park District in
Illinois was expecting an increase
of the minimum wage to $10, resulting in a budgetary impact of
$1 million. To offset this cost, Director Jay Sandine predicted an increase in program fees along with
a reduction in programs, services
and staffing. Already impacted
by the Great Recession, Sandine
voiced concern over the impending change, as his community was
struggling financially and the loss
of jobs and quality-of-life services
would only signal further hardship.
Following up with Sandine in
2020, I learned the past five years
have resulted in many changes for
the Rockford Park District. The district has cut staff, closed facilities and
reduced the number of programs it
offers. With the new Illinois minimum wage law set to have a $2 million impact on his budget over the
next four years and nowhere else to
scale back, Sandine and his team
have been looking for other areas
to adjust and alternative sources of
funding. One adjustment has been to
his Parks Foundation, which in the
past used money for capital cost and

September 2020 - Parks & Recreation

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