At its July 16 meeting the Common Council of the City of Lawrence discussed a proposed 3% pay increase for city employees. Councilor Wells asked the council president to direct the city attorney to place the matter on the council docket and said the increase should be made retroactive to the start of the year. Councilor Robinson asked that department heads identify where the funding would come from and ensure the amounts are added to department budgets going into the next budget season.

“Given these city employees, that 3% raise that the administration had said, I had put on the agenda for or the budget for this year,” Councilor Wells said, asking the president to “direct the attorney to get that on the docket so we can get that done.” Wells also asked that, if possible, the raises be made retroactive: “I would also like to even make an addendum, if at all possible, that, because the money is there, that we also make an addendum to, make the pay raise retroactive back to the first year as it was supposedly intended to begin with.”

Councilor Robinson responded with a funding-focused request: “I would like to have each of the department heads to identify the funding source for any raises that will be given. And also consider that going into budget season, that these funds will be added to their budget so that the funding source.”

The discussion referenced a prior meeting between council leadership and administration where, according to Wells, the street department director, Mr. Hennigan, expressed concern about employee retention. No formal motion or vote on a pay increase was recorded at the meeting; Wells asked the council president to take administrative steps to place the proposal before the council.