Working for the City of Novi... 4 days a week
February 5, 2010

We've all heard that, in today's economy, one type of employment still pays really well and has great benefits: government employment. But just how good are those jobs in Novi?

We decided to do some digging, and were surprised at how really nice some of those benefits are. At the same time, we were pleased to learn how much the City has already cut back on employee benefits for the future.

Just what do these benefits include in Novi today for employees not covered under the various collective bargaining agreements? This week, we look at the time-off policy for the administrative staff...

How nice is the City's time-off policy? For starters how about nearly 9 weeks off a year? That's right - 44 days a year, made up of  7 additional holidays many in the private sector don't get, 12 sick days, and for a ten-year employee 20 vacation days a year (which can be carried forward a maximum of two-year's vacation time). But wait, that's not all.

City administrative employees also get 5 personal days a year, and if they call in sick less than 6 days a year, they get paid extra for that. Sick days can be rolled forward up to a maximum of 130 days, and are paid at 50% of the then current wage upon termination. Factor in the regular holidays, and these folks are granted one day off a week all year long. Not too shabby.

It should be noted that most City employees don't take all their sick days annually, and that sick time is in lieu of a short-term disability benefit. In fact, 40 employees didn't even take a sick day last year. Kudos to them for banking those sick days!

We the People are generally very pleased with the services provided by the City of Novi, and we aren't suggesting Novi's benefits are better than other government agencies in Michigan. However, just by adjusting the generous time-off policy, the City could provide more services using existing staff - about two weeks worth of services per employee annually - without making any other changes. That's nearly two full-time employees worth of labor in the administrative category alone.

Personnel costs are a large ticket item ($30 million annually in Novi) that can and should be closely analyzed. Rather than cutting services and City staff to adjust the city's budget, careful consideration should be given to adjusting benefits so that they are more in line with the private sector.

Next week, we'll look at the retirement benefits, how lucrative they've been, and the progress that's already been made in cutting those benefits back for the future.

Thanks to the City of Novi for, as usual, being open with this public information. It's been a local trend for years now; a trend in the right direction.