P8/C8* »* » * *
482-4418
EDENTONNC 27932-1854
/ 27, 2016
50*
County adopts merit pay plan for workers
dt KHUblb PUNDtR
Editor
The Chowan County
Board of Commissioners last
week approved a plan that
would spend up to $182,000
to reward outstanding em
ployees and bring county
staff closer to die regional av
erage pay for their positions.
The plan, proposed by
County Manager Kevin How
ard, is bast'd on die average
pay in northeastern North
Carolina lor particular posi
tions — with the high and
low salaries taken out of the
equation to avoid skewing
the results.
The $182,000 figure is the
maximum cost, based on ev
ery employee achieving the
top rating on their evaluation.
As a practical matter, it Ls ex
pected that the evaluations
will reflect a more typical
pattern of scores that range
from higher to lower.
f or those employees who
are above the market rate
for their position or no more
than $500 below it, the merit
increase they are eligible for
will be a percentage increase
based on their performance
evaluation. The scale is 108
points, and all employees
will get at least a one-tenth
percent increase unless they
are rated unsatisfactory,
which indicates a total score
of 50 points or less on the
108-jx)int scale.
Employees who score 51
60 are eligible for an increase
of one-tenth-percent to one
half percent; for 61-80 points
the increase goes to 0.6 per
cent to 2.4 percent At the 80
94 percent level the merit pay
increase is 2.5 percent to 3.4
percent.
Those who score 95 or
better will earn an increase
of 3.5 percent to 4 percent.
A slightly different system,
but based on the same point
scale, is being used for em
ployees who are more than
$501 dollars below the mar
ket rate established for that
positions. Those employees
will receive a percentage
score based on the 108-point
scale — for instance, 70
points would be 64 percent
of the 108 — and would be
eligible for an increase based
on that percentage of the dif
ference between their cur
rent pay and the market rate
for that position.
Employees of the Sheriff’s
Office, Jail and 911 Center
are not included this plan
because they already are
eligible for merit pay under a
plan the county commission
ers approved previously that
went into effect in October
2015.
The maximum figure of
$182,000 for implementing
the new pay plan is based on
an entire fiscal year. For the
current fiscal year, the maxi
mum cost would be $137,000
to make the adjustments ef
fective Oct. 1 of 2015.
Senate hopeful promises not to forget voters
BY REGGIE PONDER
W- '■
■ -\r
timur
U.S. Senate candidate
Ernest Reeves told a
gathering of Demo
crats in Edenton Saturday
night that if lies elected to
represent North Carolina
in the Senate, he would be
back in Chowan County to
listen to citizens.
Reeves, a military veteran
and retired manager with
1 niter I Airlines who lives
in Greenville, is one of four
candidates in the March 15
Democratic Primary seeing
the party’s nomination in
an effort to oust incum
bent. Sen. Richard Burr, a
Republican. The others ar e
Deborah Ross, Kevin Griffin
and Gluts Rey.
About 180 of the party
faithful turned out on the
cold, snowy night for a meet
the candidates dinner at
fjeon Nixon’s Catering.
'h you t-lect me to the
I ’.S. Senate tliis will not be
the last time that you see
me," Reeves told the crowd.'
Reeves thanked Stat e
Sen. Erica Smith-lngram,
D-Northampton, for her key
note address that stressed
die need for economic
development incentives and
infrastructure in the rural
counties east of 1-95 and
the importance of fair pay
and professional respect for
teachers.
He said the state is great
tiecause of its citizens and
he wants to be the citizens’
voice in the Semite.
Reeves said he was one
of 12 diildren. He said liis
father didn’t have a lot of
education but started a
successful landscaping
business.
Teachers are very special
to him because they helped
liim overcome a spmh
impediment, he said. He
said lie supports a national
MORE INSIDE
■ Smith-Ingram urges decisive
action by Democrats - 2A
Democrat Ernest Reeves, a candidate for U.S. Senate, speaks at the Dinner With Candidates event at Leon Nixon’s Catering, Saturday.
minimum wage for teachers.
Reeves said he won a
military scholarship to St.
Augustine's College in Ra
leigh and graduated Magna
Cum Laurie.
He thanked the military
veterans in the audience.
Also speaking Saturday
night was Ron Newton, a
candidate for lieutenant
governor.
Newton said Iris main
initiatives are economic
opportunity for everyone,
tax reform that benefits
everyone, and protection of
the environment.
A former pro football
player, business manager of
a public service union and
business owner. Newton
said the election is not
about him.
“This thing is really about
ail of us,” he said.
Newton said the state
has the highest rates in the
nation of poverty ;uid child
poverty. Addressing those
problems will require com
prehensive state and federal
legislation on the magnitude
of the Civil Rights Act and
the Voting Rights Act, he
said.
Tire place to start is
restoring the state's tax code
to what it was before the
most recent tax reform was
passed, he said.
Reeves called the tax
reform the worst legisla
tion in the past 100 years,
creating a “reverse Robin
Hood” regressive tax system
that serves to “take from the
poor and give to the rich.”
He said teachers deserve
respect.
“I w;mt to pay them what
they deserve,” lie said.
Reeves also expressed
his opposition to frack
ing, which he described as
harmful to the environment.
To accomplish the tilings
that are needed in the state,
Reeves said, “the governor
needs to be a Democrat and
we need to give him a veto
proof majority.”
One of the tilings the
party needs to do in order to
win Is to put young people
in leadership positions, he
said.
Other candidates in the
Democratic Primary for
lieutenant governor are
Linda Coleman and Robert
Wilson.
The event ;iLso included
speeches by regional and
l(x;il candidates.
Byrum takes stand Monday in own defense
From staff reports
Josh Byrum took the witness
stand in his own defense Monday
afternoon and said lie feared for liis
and his younger brother’s lift' in the
midst of ;m altercation at his resi
dence when he fatally shot 21-year
old Dylan Burton a few days before
Christmas 2013.
“1 didn’t know if they were going
to kill us or what they were going to
do,” Byrum told a Chowan Comity
Sujx'rior Court jury under approxi
mately half an hour of questioning by
his defense attorney, Andy (lay.
(Jay rested his client’s defense
at approximately 4:50 p.m. Judge
Quentin Sumner instructed jurors
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©2009 The Chowan Herald
All Rights Reserved
to return at 11 a.m. Tuesday
to he;ir closing arguments
by both side's, as well as to
receive instructions prior to
deliberating.
Byrum, 23, is accused of
committing voluntary man
slaughter the evening of Dec. j
22, 2013, with the shooting
having oc'cuned at Chowan
neacn. me snooting occurred alter
an incident involving Josh Byrum,
Bryan Byrum and two brothers,
Brandon and Randy Harrison.
Josh Byrum said he was on the
couch and lus brother wife on the
love seat when they heard a commo
tion, walked to a window and saw a
truck at an intersection. He said he
and his brother later heard someone
knocking at the door, prompting lus
brother to jump up off the love seat
and walk to the front door.
Bynun said he and his brother
saw three men wanting to enter, but
he said he wasn’t stepping outside
BYRUM
because he didn't want any
problems ;ind also didn’t
know what was outside past
the front porch. He said he
advised the three they just
needed to leave.
According to Byruin,
one of the men, who wasn’t
wealing a shirt and who was
believed to be Handy Harri
son, asserted a stance with one toot
outside and the other foot inside the
door. "They told as that we could ei
ther come outside'Dr they were going
to ran up in the house,”Byrum stud.
Byram said he and his brother
stepped back in an attempt to shut
the door, but he said the tliree pushed
their way in.
When Gay asked Byrum who
he felt was in control of his living
room, Byram said cerhiinly not hirft.
He said one of the Harrison broth
ers was accusing him of calling his
See TAKES STAND, 3A
Snowfall has slight
impact in Chowan
From staff reports
Chowan County saw light
snowfall tutd occasionally
heavy rains over t he weekend
but no nuyor weather-related
incidents were reported.
The most serious impact
wits The Town of Edenton
had discharges of untreated
sewage from its collection
system at two locations dur
ing the extremely heavy rain
on Friday.
There was a discharge of
5,801 gallons at, the intersec
tion of North Broad Street and
Paradise Road. The discharge
was discovered around 11:00
pm and was stopped at 12:37
am.
About 5,800 gallons of un
treated wastewater reached
Filbert’s Creek/Pembroke
Creek. The untreated waste
water entered Edenton Bay
and the Chowan River Basin.
There was also a dis
charge of 4,845 gallons near
710 N. Granville Street. This
discharge was discovered
around 11 p.m. and was
stopped around 12:15 am.
About 4,845 gallons of un
treated wastewater reached
Filbert’s Creek/Pembroke
Creek and entered Edenton
Bay and the Chowan River
Basin. This discharge was due
to the extremely heavy rain
event. The sigiuficant amount
of rainfall help'd dilute the
impact of the discharge.
Town crews responded
See SNOWFALL, 2A
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