Lake County Board committee reaches consensus on premium COVID-related pay, but details need to be ironed out

A monthslong push by Lake County jail correctional division and court security officers for retroactive premium pay, for exposure to COVID-19 while working throughout the pandemic, may ultimately benefit sheriff’s office and other county employees who were similarly exposed to the virus because of the nature of their work.

Just who exactly will receive the payouts, and how much the county will allocate, remains to be determined. But the Lake County Board’s Special Committee on COVID-19 Pandemic Recovery and Investment reached a consensus last week to consider a staff proposal that would see nonmanagerial staff receive flat bonuses of $500, and commissioned staff to create another proposal that would use tiered payouts based on the type of work or level of exposure.

The first proposal discussed April 21 could see the county allocate about $500,000 to all eligible employees who completed “essential work” in person from March 16 through November of 2020.

The matter of premium pay, which is being considered separately from nearly 80 project pitches seeking a share of about $45 million in remaining American Rescue Plan Act funds, drew support on the full Lake County Board floor in February after correctional officers and Teamsters Local 700 union representatives called for the measure.

That support once again materialized at the five-person special committee meeting on April 21, which drew about half of the board’s members for the discussion and an update on the capital projects under consideration.

“It’s hard to feel forgotten, and that’s what these individuals feel,” said District 16 member Esiah Campos, D-Round Lake Beach.

Campos said many “rank-and-file” sheriff’s office employees approached him about their desire for premium pay while he was campaigning for his board seat last summer and fall, and reiterated he would steadfastly support their calls for the measure.

Special committee chair and District 11 member Paul Frank, D-Highland Park, expressed support for premium pay and said it was helpful to now have details about how other counties throughout Illinois, including Cook, DuPage and McHenry counties, allocated some of their funds to employees.

An outspoken proponent of the premium pay idea, District 1 member Linda Pedersen, R-Antioch, said, “None of us knew what was going to be happening during this COVID crisis.

“I personally feel we need to do something,” she said. “I don’t know exactly what, but we need to do something.”

District 19 member Marah Altenberg, D-Buffalo Grove, said the county should be showing its employees they are “working for an employer that cares,” and that by nature of the job, correctional officers and health department employees were exposed to the community at a higher rates than others.

“Even if 94 (of 102 Illinois) counties decided not to do something (like premium pay), that doesn’t dictate to us what we should do,” Altenberg said. “We need to be our own people, our own leaders in Lake County and we’ve been a leader on so many issues.”

Campos added that list of counties who did use some of their federal funds for first responders was a “list of people who stepped up.”

Assistant County Administrator Matthew Meyers told the committee that employees performing essential work is considered an acceptable use of American Rescue Plans Act funding, according to U.S. Treasury guidelines, though he cautioned that embarking down the path toward premium pay could amount to “creating a list of winners and losers” within the county.

Issuing the payments would likely require special justifications for employees who make more than about $90,510 a year, Meyers explained.

Special committee vice chair and District 17 member Michael Danforth, R-Fox River Grove, said the workers in question, “stepped up to the plate during trying times,” and that two core tenets of government include punishing people for bad deeds and rewarding those who do good.

Danforth did point out, however, that by pursuing premium pay to any extent, including a tiered system of awarding the payouts, the county may be setting itself up to “be ridiculed and despised” for not doing enough for particular sets of workers or for certain departments.

“It’s much easier to be equal as it is, (than) to be totally equitable,” he said.

There was already one sign on April 21 that the first proposal might not satisfy everyone.

The justification for a payout for employees making more than $90,510 would apply to most of the correctional officers and sheriff’s deputies pushing for the payments, according to sheriff’s Deputy Eric Alexander, who said he was representing the union.

“For COVID, since it started with the shortage of staff, we all are past that ($90,510 mark) because of overtime (compensation),” he said.

Alexander said that while officers appreciate the committee’s “words about law enforcement,” $500 would only equate to about one day of working overtime.

“Every one of us have caught (COVID-19),” he added. “Every one of us has taken it home to our family, our elderly and parents. They have gotten sick, our kids have gotten sick. We all have taken it home. It has taken a toll on us.”

In February, Teamsters Local 700 business agent Mike Tellez told the News-Sun that employees believe that between a few thousand dollars and $10,000 per officer is merited.

Jennifer Clark, D-Libertyville, said she was inclined not to award particular county employees more than others if premium pay is approved and the employees meet eligibility requirements.

“If you’re front line and people are walking in, or cleaning everything, you are just as at risk as everyone else,” Clark said.

Carissa Casbon, D-Gurnee, said that while a $500 payout would not “address the worth of these individuals or their sacrifices,” the county should do something to express its thanks.

She said while she was inclined in general to prioritize lower-paid employees for backpay, she could see why the board might consider tiered payouts for first responders or health care employees.

If the special committee were to approve premium pay, it would next move through the Financial & Administrative Committee before advancing to a full board vote.

The committee, which meets again April 28, has been considering whether to issue $10 million, $15 million or $20 million in its next round of funding, and proposals were reviewed and ranked by consultant Bronner.

So far, Lake County has dispersed approximately $90 million of $135 million in federal funding, which must be used by Dec. 31, 2026.