Editor’s note: Do you want answers to questions about the Golden Triangle? Each week, Dispatch reporters set out to explain or update a timely, practical issue. Email your question to [email protected].
Near the end of the Columbus mayoral election this year, a candidate posted a photo to Facebook revealing the pay stub of a Columbus first responder with an hourly wage of $13.48.
The post quickly drew dozens of comments, with many questioning how much first responders are paid, who sets the wages and whether it’s enough.
How much do city employees earn in Starkville and Columbus? What factors into their pay?
What is the minimum wage in Mississippi?
Mississippi, like most southern states, doesn’t have a state minimum wage. Instead, it defaults to the federal minimum of $7.25 per hour.
In 2013, the Mississippi Legislature passed a law that prevents counties, municipalities and other local governments from setting their own minimum wage, mandating paid leave or requiring a so-called “living wage” for private employers. In this context, “private employers” refers to any business operating independently from a local government.
However, local governments can set wage policies for their own employees, and several in the Golden Triangle have done so.
What are local government employee wages in the Golden Triangle?
In Starkville, city employees, including office workers and laborers, earn $16.75 per hour over 2,080 hours for an average annual salary of $34,840.
In Columbus, city employees and laborers earn a minimum of $15 an hour throughout a 2,080-hour work year for an annual pay of about $31,200.
What about first responders?
In Starkville, Ward 2 Alderwoman and budget chair Sandra Sistrunk said entry-level police officers earn $21.18 per hour, working approximately 2,236 hours a year for an average annual salary of about $47,358, not including overtime.
Columbus police officers earn $18.56 per hour over 2,288 hours for an annual salary of about $42,500, not including overtime, Columbus Chief Financial Officer Jim Brigham told The Dispatch.
Firefighters’ pay is more “nuanced,” due to their unique scheduling and overtime structure, Sistrunk said.
In Starkville, firefighters are scheduled to work about 2,756 hours each year at a base rate of $15.12 per hour. This works out to an annual salary of about $41,670. Sistrunk said that overtime is a significant part of firefighters’ compensation and adds roughly $5,500 to their annual pay, bringing their average total salary to between $47,000 and $48,000.
“There’s more to the story than that pay stub, particularly if you’re just zeroing in on that hourly rate,” Sistrunk said. “So that’s the part that usually gets missed in these discussions.”
Sistrunk also noted the unique work schedule for firefighters: 48 hours on duty followed by 96 hours off. While on duty, firefighters live at the station and are paid for the full 48 hours, regardless of whether they’re working, eating or sleeping.
“When you’re comparing firemen, engineers (and) sanitation workers, there’s always something a little different and unique about each job, and it’s not quite as black as white as people want it to be in terms of just comparing hourly rates,” Sistrunk said.
Columbus firefighters receive a base rate of $13.48 per hour over about 3,068 hours annually, for an average salary of about $41,400, not including overtime.
Brigham said that a firefighter’s hourly wage doesn’t reflect actual take-home pay.
“Our hourly rate is just fitted into what we want their starting salaries to be,” Brigham said. “For the fire department, they get a lot of overtime, so if you’re looking at true earnings, the additional overtime that the fire department gets … some of the firefighters earn more than the chief just because of the overtime that they’re putting in.”
Sistrunk said that although minimum wages and pay stubs can appear misleading, she’d like to see city employees paid more – a topic sure to arise in the budget meetings of both Columbus and Starkville ahead of the new fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1.
“I would love to pay all of them more,” Sistrunk said. “… But there’s a limit, and we do try to make sure that we’re paying a reasonable wage and something that’s comparable to other municipalities.”
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 41 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 41 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
