TOPEKA – Governor Brownback on Thursday authorized state agencies to grant a 2.5 percent raise to any unclassified employee in the Executive Branch who was left out of the Legislature’s pay plan.
The decision comes after consultation with members of the Governor’s Cabinet, the Director of the Budget, and state employees.
The Governor does not have the legal authority to extend raises to only those classified employees who did not receive an increase from the Legislature, only further legislative action could do that. Therefore, the raise only applies to unclassified workers who fell through the pay plan criteria established by the legislature.
“This effort furthers the Governor’s commitment to rewarding employees for their performance and trust in their employer,” said Secretary of Administration Sarah Shipman said. “The administration is currently looking at the agency budgets for Fiscal Year 2019 to determine how inequities and salary compression can be further addressed. We look forward to working with the 2018 Legislature to further address this situation.”
The pay increases will utilize existing agency funds and take effect the pay period that starts Sunday, September 24th.
While most large agencies will utilize existing funds to allocate the raise via paychecks on an ongoing basis, some agencies will use one-time funds to give a bonus equivalent to the 2.5 percent increase.
Additional information will be provided to employees by agencies, including opportunities for classified employees to receive a pay increase by voluntarily accepting an unclassified position.