Bluffton council’s personnel and finance committees hopes to develop a comprehensive pay ordinance for village employees this year.

The two committees discussed options in a joint meeting Jan. 12. Meeting with council members Phill Talavinia, Mitch Kingsley and Dave Steiner were village employees Jack Huber, Jesse Blackburn, Ryan Burkholder and Matt Oglesbee.

Four criteria discussed:
• Annual performance review for employees
• Structured pay rate as employees are hired
• Employee incentives, which benefit the village, such as additional education, licenses, certifications and trainer status.
• Meeting performance goals set in prior reviews

Talavinia, Kingsley and Steiner said they hope to set pay rates and employee policies, which make Bluffton competitive among similar communities. Cost-of-living adjusts will also be an annual consideration.

In planning a second meeting, the council members said that they hope for some specific numbers before beginning to create a wage structure.

Some of these figures include comparing police wages and service benchmarks from other communities.