A handful of Westmoreland County government department heads were handed substantial raises Thursday, a move commissioners said was related to their work during ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The biggest pay hike was given to Solicitor Melissa Guiddy, who has seen her salary increase by about 70% since she was hired in 2015.

Guiddy will receive a raise of more than $11,000. Starting in January, her new annual salary will be $94,725.

Guiddy is considered a part-time employee for dedicating 80% of her time as head of the county’s legal department. When she was hired, she earned $56,000 annually.

In addition to her work the county’s lawyer, Guiddy also served as a spokeswoman for county government as it dealt with various coronavirus-related issues including infections at the county courthouse, jail and Westmoreland Manor. She also served as the county’s public voice during the weeks leading up to and following the 2020 general election in November.

“She has gone above and beyond,” Commissioner Sean Kertes said.

Commissioners, along with Controller Jeff Balzer acting as the county’s salary board, also approved raises for Public Works Director Greg McCloskey, Finance Director Meghan McCandless, Public Defender Wayne McGrew and Chief Clerk Vera Spina.

McCloskey will receive a raise of nearly $8,000, bringing his salary to $86,864; McCandless was given a raise of almost $5,000 to increase her annual pay to $76,487 and McGrew will receive two raises over the next six months totaling more than $6,400 that will bring his pay to $95,985 on July 1.

Spina’s job duties expanded during the course of the pandemic as she coordinated various remote public meetings and oversaw the commissioners office day-to-day scheduling. She will receive a $4,200 bump in pay, increasing her salary to $41,523.

“This is our appreciation to them,” Kertes said. “These individuals did not take off and receive the Trump (federal unemployment benefit) money, the $600-plus unemployment like many of our other employees have. Everyone came to work and did a phenomenal job of keeping this county going, and this is our appreciation to them and to let them know we thank them for what they’ve done over the last 12 months now. This is our gratitude to them.”

Commissioner Doug Chew said he supported the raises to ensure the county retains key staff.

“For me, it was bringing those department heads up to a salary more commensurate with their counterparts in the private sector,” Chew said.

Commissioner Gina Cerilli said each of the department heads who received raises proved their value this year as the pandemic raged and impacted county operations.

“They went above and beyond this year. Their job duties increased a lot throughout 2020 with covid and all we had to deal with,” Cerilli said. “Melissa is here at all hours of the night, on the weekend, and she deserves double the salary she is currently getting. Unfortunately, we are the government, we are taxpayers, so we can’t pay these people what they truly deserve.”

Commissioners also handed out quasi-raises to top staffers in the county’s public safety department. Employees, including the department’s directors and supervisors, are paid hourly. Starting in 2021 their salaries, which will remain at their current levels, will be based on working additional hours.

Their pay is currently based on a 6.5-hour work day.

Those 16 public safety staffers will by paid for an additional half-hour of work each day and increase by 30-minutes for in each of the next three years. By 2023, each of those employees will be paid for working an eight-hour day.

Kertes said the public safety department’s top staffers routinely work more than 6.5 hours daily and manage employees who work eight-hour days.

“We’re just compensating them for the hours they work,” Kertes said.

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