Westmoreland County’s elected officials will not get raises in 2021.

Annual cost-of-living raises earned by county commissioners and row officers since 1995 have been determined by changes to the consumer price index calculated by the U.S. Department of Labor for Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland.

For 2021, that index came in unchanged from 2020, meaning that for the first time since 2015 elected officials will not receive a cost-of-living increase.

“There is no reason we should get a raise,” said Commissioner Sean Kertes. “I’m 100% fine with not getting raises.”

As board chairman, Kertes earns $84,011, about $3,000 more than fellow commissioners Doug Chew and Gina Cerilli.

Pennsylvania’s elected officials are also going without raises this year. State lawmakers in September passed legislation that froze the elected officials pay in 2021 at current levels. The salary freeze included the governor, top executive branch officials, state representatives, senators and judges.

Chew, who like Kertes is finishing up his first year in office, said he too was not disappointed.

“I didn’t know we ever get raises,” Chew said.

Chew will see his checking account be a bit lighter in the year ahead. During his campaign, Chew pledged to donate 60% of his salary to the county’s general fund to help pay for the drug court program. That donation, expected to be about $48,600, will be made in early 2021, Chew said.

“My plan is to write a check and to do that at the beginning of the next three years,” he said.

Salaries for most other county union employees will increase next year by about 2%, according to existing labor contracts.

The county’s salary board last week approved handing out 2% raises to 400 nonunion workers in 2021.

Nonunion workers in 2020 received the same 1.95% raises the county’s elected officials earned last year.

“Our nonunion workers did not get pandemic raises this year, so we wanted to give them a little bump this year,” Kertes said.

Throughout the second half of the year, commissioners handed out additional wages to essential employees who have been required to work in departments where there is heightened risk of exposure to the coronavirus. Those who received pandemic pay include staff at Westmoreland Manor, the county-owned nursing, jail guards and most recently children’s bureau caseworkers who are required to visit local homes to monitor clients.

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