2022-2023 • Volume 41, Issue 4
THE
REPORTER
State Employees Association of North Carolina
Final budget includes raises, bonuses for retirees The House and Senate passed a $30 billion state budget on Sept. 22 and sent it to Gov. Roy Cooper for signature. Cooper let the budget become law without his signature. The budget contains pay raises for state employees and a one-time bonus for retirees. SEANC Executive Director Ardis Watkins told reporters the raises do not go far enough to tackle the vacancy crisis in state government. “This is a very dangerous gamble with public health and safety,” she told WRAL. “Employees will keep leaving if this is what they get when there is plenty of money for a better
raise, and more than 20% of state jobs are vacant. And the public, unfortunately, will pay the price for the lack of services these vacancies cause.” Though the budget has passed, there is still time for legislators to do the right thing regarding a bonus to help retain employees. SEANC is advocating for a separate bill with a holiday bonus of $5,000. The state is sitting on a surplus of over $3 billion built on unspent funds because of vacant jobs. Meanwhile, employees are overworked and leaving in droves.
The State Budget includes: • A 4% pay raise in 2023 and a 3% raise in 2024 for most state employees, including non-certified school personnel, community college, and UNC employees. • A 4% one-time supplement for retirees in 2023. • A 5.5% pay raise in 2023 for employees on a step-pay plan and an additional 3% in 2024. • Labor market reserves for agencies to use to address certain position salaries to bring them more in line with similar positions. • Funding for the State Health Plan and the Retirement System. • An average of 2% pay raise for bus drivers in addition to the 4% across the board in 2023. Increases in year two for a total of 8%.
Convention Delegates Elect Officers for 2023-2025 Delegates at the 39th Annual SEANC Convention in Greensboro Sept. 7-9 elected Kirk Montgomery of Burlington (District 25) as the 2023-2025 SEANC President. Wendell Powell of Fayetteville (District 41) was elected First Vice President, Emily Jones of Clayton (District 41) was elected Second Vice President, and Stacie Crabtree of Moncure (District 41) was elected General Treasurer. Martha Fowler of Mebane (District 19) is the Immediate Past President. They assumed their new roles on Oct. 1. EMPAC presented its Lisa B. Mitchell Legislators of the Year awards to House Minority Leader Rep. Robert Reives II and Rep. Donna White for their commitment to state employee and retiree issues during the 2023 General Assembly session. Delegates also honored Joe Fearrington, a 61-year-old UNC-Chapel Hill staff member who shepherded students to safety during the recent shooting on campus. Fearrington was in attendance at the convention. As part of the annual community service project, members
Kirk Montgomery (center) was elected SEANC President at the SEANC Convention on Sept. 7. Wendell Powell (right) was elected First Vice President, Emily Jones (second from left) was elected Second Vice President, and Stacie Crabtree (second from right) was elected General Treasurer. Martha Fowler (left) will serve as Immediate Past President.
and districts donated to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Association and the American Diabetes Association. They also made donations to the SEANC Scholarship Foundation.
The Reporter is going digital! The next issue of The Reporter will be a digital-only publication. Members will receive an email from SEANC when it is ready to view online. To read this and other issues of The Reporter online, visit www.seanc.org/publications