By DAVE SCHULTZ
Bluffton Street Commissioner Tim Simpson is being proactive when it comes to keeping — and attracting — employees with commercial drivers licenses.
Recent changes in federal requirements have raised the cost of training for a CDL from the neighborhood of $250 to as much as $4,000 or $4,500. The city’s stance on such training has been that the employee should pay the cost of the training, which can prove to be an onerous burden for the employee.
CDLs are desirable for Street Department employees for them to drive the trucks in the department’s fleet.
Simpson asked that current employee Kaitlyn Weikel be given a raise to $20 an hour. Weikel has a CDL and the request “is to bring (her) pay in line with the current demands.”
Simpson is also hiring another employee with a CDL, and asked the city’s Board of Public Works and Safety last week to bring that employee’s salary to a similar rate to Weikel’s.
daves@news-banner.com
