County employees to receive pay raises

HUNTSVILLE | A 5.5% pay raise for Scott County employees in the proposed budget for fiscal year 2025-2026 will push the pay scale for new law enforcement officers to over $17 an hour, and for new paramedics to over $21 an hour.

The budget, which will be considered by Scott County Commission on two votes later this month, includes a 5.5% pay raise for all county employees. Elected officials are not included in the pay hikes.

According to Scott County Mayor Jerried Jeffers, the new hire pay scale will look like this:

• Deputies: $17.01 per hour

• EMTs: $16.18 per hour

• EMT-IVs: $17.41 per hour

• Paramedics: $21.02 per hour

• Clerks: $15.19 per hour

• Dispatchers: $14.70 per hour

• Corrections Officers: $14.70 per hour

Jeffers said that county employees are eligible for retirement through the Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System, as well as medical insurance, dental and vision insurance, critical care insurance, and a $30,000 employer-paid life insurance policy. Deputies and corrections officers are paid via Tour of Duty pay as defined by the TN Dept. of Labor.

Employees also receive $600 per year in additional pay if they have an associate’s degree, or $2,500 for a bachelor’s degree or $3,000 for a master’s degree. There is also longevity pay, which begins after three years of employment and increases in increments beginning with employment year number six, 11, 16 and 20.

“When this budget is passed, employees will have received 16.5% in raises in budgets under my watch (as mayor),” Jeffers said.