The Plymouth mayor and clerk-treasurer will be getting a raise in 2019.
The matter came before the Plymouth City Council members Monday night where the second reading of an ordinance was on the table that would allow for a 3.5 percent raise for the mayor and clerk-treasurer in the 2019 budget. It also includes a freeze on the salary for the council members for the second year in a row.
The salaries for the mayor and clerk-treasurer were frozen in 2018. The loss of two big industries was said to be the reason for the freeze.
Councilman Gary Cook listed about nine industries and businesses that closed their doors in 2018 and noted the growing percent of unemployment in Marshall County when defending his objection to a 3.5 percent increase. He said he supported a two percent raise for the mayor and clerk-treasurer as it falls in line with the rest of the employees as approved in a 2019 salary ordinance.
Two members of the audience spoke in favor of the proposed pay increase of 3.5 percent after citing all of the positive activity in the city and its future.
With that, a vote on the second reading of the ordinance was conducted with Jeff Houin, Don Ecker Jr., Bill Walters, Shiloh Milner and Randy Longanecker voting in favor while Gary Cook voted no. Councilman Duane Culp was not in attendance at the meeting. The third reading of the ordinance resulted in the same roll call vote. The ordinance passed with majority votes.
