Comp News – The city of Aspen is hiring an outside consulting firm to enact an organization-wide study on the compensation of its employees. The report will investigate whether the city compensates its employees adequately and if its payscale is effective enough to attract and retain employees.

City council members asked the consulting firm, Segal Company, to give special consideration to aspects that influence the high cost of living in Aspen, Colorado which could be addressed in its total compensation philosophy.

City Manager Sara Ott told council that Tuesday’s discussion was a philosophical one that goes beyond salaries.

 

“What is the social contract that we’re creating as part of our hiring process and our philosophy about how we decide how to pay and who do we compare ourselves to in deciding how to pay?” she asked. “This has sort of been a place where I don’t think there’s been transparency with previous councils around this process quite frankly, and I think we could do a better job in communicating it with employees.”

 

The final product will include a total compensation philosophy as a written statement about the organization’s total rewards, benefits and compensation strategies.

Councilwoman Ann Mullins has said that the city’s compensation philosophy should go beyond its base salary and embody “the city and counsel’s goals.”

“Assist people with housing, child care, provide opportunities for them to volunteer within the community,” Mullin said. “A benefits package that is put together that really supports a healthy community and addresses the problems and the challenges that we’ve seen for our employees.”

 

The final product will include a total compensation philosophy as a written statement about the organization’s total rewards, benefits and compensation strategies.

As Aspen seeks to establish a new foundation for its compensation philosophy, it could inspire other cities could undertake a similar examination.

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