A proposal to raise pay grades for severely understaffed positions in Cayuga County’s 911 Center and Department of Social Services was tabled Tuesday night after nearly 20 minutes of debate over union concerns, recruitment problems and whether the proposed increases went far enough.
The resolution would have raised the pay grades for supervising emergency services dispatchers, caseworkers, senior caseworkers and Case Supervisor Grade B positions.
County officials proposed the changes as an attempt to address longstanding recruitment and retention problems.
The 911 Center currently has only one supervising dispatcher filling four authorized supervisory positions, lawmakers said during the meeting.
Social Services is facing its own staffing problems. County officials said caseworker caseloads are tied for the highest in New York state, while vacancies have left remaining employees carrying additional mandated work.
The proposed resolution would have moved supervising emergency services dispatchers from Grade 14LH to Grade 15LH. Caseworkers would have moved from Grade 17 to Grade 19, senior caseworkers from Grade 19 to Grade 22 and Case Supervisor Grade B positions from Grade 22 to Grade 24.
But the discussion became more complicated after a CSEA representative told lawmakers the union hadn’t agreed to the changes.
The county and CSEA are negotiating a successor collective bargaining agreement after the previous contract expired Dec. 31, 2025. The union representative said CSEA doesn’t object to employees receiving higher pay but disputes whether the county can unilaterally change contractual compensation terms while negotiations are underway.
That argument led several lawmakers to question whether the Legislature should act before further discussions with the union.
Others argued the staffing problems have become too serious to wait.
Human Resources Administrator Diane Jones told lawmakers the proposed grades were developed by examining job qualifications, internal pay relationships and supervisory responsibilities.
For 911 supervisors, she said the existing salary differential was only about 5% above regular dispatchers, while supervisory positions elsewhere typically carry a differential closer to 10%.
Depending on an employee’s existing step, the proposed change could produce an increase ranging from roughly $3,500 to slightly more than $5,000, not including the 12% shift differential available to certain employees.
That wasn’t enough for some lawmakers.
Judicial and Public Safety Committee Chair Mark Strong said he had spoken with former 911 supervisors who returned to regular dispatcher positions because the additional responsibility wasn’t worth the pay difference.
Strong said training a dispatcher can take roughly a year and a half, making the staffing shortage particularly difficult to solve quickly.
“We only have one supervisor currently at the 911, and we need four,” he said during the debate.
Other lawmakers questioned why the situation had been allowed to deteriorate for years.
One legislator said problems recruiting and retaining employees in 911 and DSS have existed for roughly a decade and criticized the county’s planning and communication, saying longstanding neglect shouldn’t suddenly be treated as an emergency.
Another legislator argued that waiting for a perfect solution could mean continuing to do nothing while staffing conditions worsen.
The DSS portion also carried a relatively limited local cost because caseworker salaries are substantially reimbursed with state and federal money. Legislators said the gross additional cost associated with the proposed caseworker increases was around $90,000 before reimbursement.
County officials said the staffing shortage itself presents an operational and public safety problem.
Earlier in the meeting, lawmakers approved the creation of two Emergency Services Dispatcher positions through the state’s HELP program, which temporarily allows qualifying local governments to hire workers without first requiring a competitive civil service examination.
The county also appointed Benjamin Guzalak as its new 911 administrator.
The Legislature ultimately voted to table the pay-grade resolution, with several members who supported higher wages saying they wanted more time to negotiate with the union and reconsider whether the proposed 911 increase was sufficient.
The issue is expected to return as county officials continue working through staffing and compensation questions ahead of the 2027 budget.
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