About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 28, 2018)
4A Sunday, October 28, 2018 The Times, Gainesville, Georgia | gainesvilletimes.com LOCAL Wage survey The average pay of jobs as reported by 20-plus companies responding to a Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce survey: SCOn ROGERS I The Times Human Resources receptionist Celibeth Rivera checks mail addressed to HR department employees Wednesday, Oct. 24, at the Hall County Government Center. WAGE ■ Continued from 1A Also, data is divided between manufacturing and non-manufac turing businesses. For example, the average pay is $199,490 for a manufacturing president/CEO and $184,017 for a non-manufacturing president/ CEO. The chamber started doing such surveys about 20 years ago. “Regardless of where our econ omy is, our employers need to stay competitive,” said Shelley Davis, the chamber’s vice president for existing industry. “We want healthy competition ... and for businesses to be sustainable and continue to grow, which is our eco nomic development objective.” Over the years, the survey has helped companies make internal decisions, but there’s an external component, as well, Davis said. “We have companies (outside Hall) that are looking to possibly locate here and they’re trying to determine if this location or another county, state or country would be better for them to be in,” she said. About 10 years ago, the cham ber added survey questions about benefits and pay practices/ policies, such as how a company addresses pay raises, vacation and sick leave, as well as general attendance. “You never want to be at the very lowest of the pay practices or the very highest,” Davis said. “(The highest) will put you out of business and the (lowest) — well, you want to keep your employees Production Semi-complex machine operator: $38,000 Lead worker: $40,000 Supervisor: $59,000 Quality manager: $83,000 Maintenance Facilities maintenance worker: $42,000 Maintenance mechanic: $50,000 Engineer: $104,000 Materials Material handler: $31,000 Forklift operator: $33,000 Shipping and receiving clerk: $35,000 Shipping/receiving manager: $67,000 and (if you lose them), that will also put you out of business.” The chamber doesn’t just annu ally survey on pay practices. The last findings — in 2017 — showed, among other things, that employ ees got an average pay increase of 3.09 percent, 10 percent of the workforce is temporary employ ees, and the average amount of days for paid bereavement is 3 days. The 2018 survey did consider other benefits and found that, in general, medical insurance costs would not be “further shifted to employees,” that companies provided short- and long-term disability and companies had a “retirement (option) in a defined contribution plan.” “I feel like it is always good to Human Resources Human resource generalist: $60,000 Safety and health professional: $75,000 Human resources manager: $91,000 Finance Accounting clerk: $40,000 Finance manager: $95,000 Office Receptionist: $31,000 Customer Service representative: $42,000 Administrative assistant: $47,000 Sales representative: $69,000 Operations manager: $119,000 President/CEO: $192,000 be able to have a benchmark infor mation, whether that is for wages or benefits, for comparative pur poses,” said Bill Moats, human resources director for Hall County. “Employers can benefit greatly from this type of information, as considerations are given to things like pay increases or decisions related to the overall compensa tion program.” Elke Yath, human resources manager for Mincey Marble, said the wage survey “is very valuable to us.” “It helps us stay on top of trends in the local labor market and it provides guidance for us to make sound salary budgeting deci sions,” Yath said. “The goal is to offer salaries that are fair and competitive relative to our indus try, so that we can attract and retain the best people.” Alex George, plant manager at PPG in Oakwood, agreed. “We use the data to remain competitive in the marketplace and to attract and retain qualified employees,” he said. Tm still puzzling — why the transition couldn’t have been as smooth for these patients as it was for other patients in other insurance programs.’ Dr. Matthey Harris, managing partner at Northeast Georgia Diagnostic Clinic CLINIC ■ Continued from 1A “As a result of that, we had to change our corporate structure,” Beyer said. And this change included a new tax identification number. Beyer said all of the major insurance carriers in the local market, including United, Cigna, Humana, Blue Cross Blue Shield and Medi care Advantage programs, accepted the tax ID change. “We didn’t miss a beat,” he added. But those providers serve employer and group-spon sored health plans. Alliant is the only health insurer offering individual plans in Hall County this year. And individuals can only access Alliant coverage through the insurer’s agree ment with Health Partners, which is owned by the North east Georgia Health System. “They in turn forced that situation onto Alliant,” Beyer said. “These (patients) have been left out to fend for themselves.” Steve McNeilly, vice president of managed care and integration strategies at Health Partners, said his board of directors approved keeping the diagnostic clinic in its network three months ago. But the tax ID change, which affects billing prac tices, moved the diagnostic clinic out of network. “We have not done any thing to change the status,” McNeilly said. “This is the piece that’s misinterpreted. That’s what caused all this to happen.” Northside’s presence in Hall County, while not entirely new, was met with concern by representatives of NGHS when the pending sale of the diagnostic clinic was announced last spring. McNeilly said Northside could apply to serve Alliant patients again, and at that point would go through a standard eligibility and cre- dentialing process, agree ment to terms and rates, and ultimately would need approval from the board of directors. “They may, they may not,” he added. “Obviously, it’s not what we intended to do at all. Had they kept that old (tax ID) number, we wouldn’t even be having this conversation.” The loss of coverage for Alliant patients at the diag nostic clinic came abruptly. Only on Oct. 10 were some patients notified by the insurer that their coverage had been dropped as of Oct. 1. “I’m still puzzling — why the transition couldn’t have been as smooth for these patients as it was for other patients in other insurance programs,” said Dr. Matthey Harris, managing partner of the diagnostic clinic. “We are certainly open to discussions. We hope we can do what’s best for the patients. We hope every party wants to do that. ” Harris said many patients have showed up for appoint ments made months in advance only to find out they are no longer covered. “We don’t want our patients scared and con fused,” she said. Patients at the clinic seek services for endocrinology, oncology and rheumatology, for example, and also see primary care physicians, through their Alliant cover age. The clinic has patients on dialysis and chemother apy regimens. For these patients, the impact on continuity of care and access to specialists could be severe. Some have chosen to pay out of pocket. Others may have to turn elsewhere. And it’s possible others may not get the care they need. McNeilly said some patients may be able to access care through an affili ate network, though benefit levels and other options in health plans may vary. And Beyer said that the clinic does have the ability to provide for some patients with chronic conditions. “We’re trying to accommo date them as best we can, ” he added. AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM CASAS ■ Continued from 1A oversight of all news coverage for the daily newspaper, its digital and social media offer ings, and affiliated print products, as well as management of The Times newsroom staff. She will also help set the editorial tone for the newspaper as a member of its editorial board. “In the dozen years Shan non has been at The Times, she has worked her way up from an entry level job to top management positions, and has been impressive at every step along the way. She is very much in tune with the changes media companies have to make in the modern informa tion market, and has a deft sense for connecting with the community we serve,” said Norman Baggs, general manager of The Times. “The newspaper has a tradition of great editors, and I have no doubt Shannon is going to leave a very positive mark on journalism in the Gainesville community,” Baggs said. “As an industry, newspapers are in transition, and young, talented leaders like Shannon will determine where they go in the future.” A native of Gwinnett County, Casas is a 2005 graduate of Berry College in Rome. “I’ve learned a lot through my years with The Times, both about our community and journalism. I love what I do, and though we’ve got plenty of challenges ahead of us, I’m excited about leading our staff to meet those chal lenges and the needs of our subscribers,” Casas said. “The news industry is changing rapidly, but the need for quality community reporting has not changed. Gainesville and Hall County residents deserve a news source that will hold their government officials accountable, inform them about incoming develop ments and examine any issues of communitywide concern. The Times aims to meet those needs as well as entertain our readers, whether that’s with human interest stories, events, podcasts or other new media. ” Casas and her husband, Brendan, live in northwest Hall. They are members of Gaines ville First United Methodist Church and are foster parents to two children. Staff report ‘The news industry is changing rapidly, but the need for quality community reporting has not changed.’ Shannon Casas The Times editor in chief CITY OF GAINESVILLE ELECTION NOTICE NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN THAT, IN ACCORDANCE WITH O.C.G.A. § 3-3-70, 21-2- 540, AND ALL OTHER APPLICABLE GEORGIA LAWS, A SPECIAL ELECTION SHALL BE HELD IN THE CITY OF GAINESVILLE, GEORGIA FOR THE PURPOSE OF VOTING ON WHETHER THE GOVERNING AUTHORITY SHALL BE AUTHORIZED TO PERMIT AND REGULATE SUNDAY SALES OF DISTILLED SPIRITS OR ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES BY THE DRINK FROM 11:00 A.M. TO 12:30 P.M. THE BALLOT SHALL READ AS FOLLOWS: “( ) YES SHALL THE GOVERNING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF GAINESVILLE, GEORGIA BE AUTHORIZED TO PERMIT AND REGULATE SUNDAY SALES OF DISTILLED SPIRITS OR ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES FOR BEVERAGE PURPOSES ( ) NO BY THE DRINK FROM 11:00 A.M. TO 12:30 P.M.?” THE SPECIAL ELECTION WILL BE HELD ON NOVEMBER 6, 2018, IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE STATE-WIDE GENERAL ELECTION. THE VOTING PRECINCTS WILL BE THE DESIGNATED PRECINCTS UTILIZED FOR STATE-WIDE GENERAL ELECTIONS IN HALL COUNTY. POLLS WILL BE OPEN FROM 7:00 AM TO 7:00 PM ON ELECTION DAY. CITY OF GAINESVILLE REGISTERED VOTERS AS OF OCTOBER 9, 2018 WILL BE ELIGIBLE TO VOTE IN THIS SPECIAL ELECTION. ADVANCE VOTING WILL BE AVAILABLE FROM OCTOBER 15, 2018 THRU NOVEMBER 2, 2018 FROM 8:00 AM TO 5:00 PM AT THE HALL COUNTY GOVERNMENT CENTER. SATURDAY VOTING WILL BE AVAILABLE ON OCTOBER 27, 2018 FROM 9:00 AM TO 4:00 PM AT THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS: HALL COUNTY GOVERNMENT CENTER, EAST HALL COMMUNITY CENTER, NORTH HALL COMMUNITY CENTER AND SPOUTS SPRINGS LIBRARY. Denise Jordan Gainesville City Clerk LEGACY LINK ABOUT MEDICARE WHAT WILL YOU FIND DURING MEDICARE OPEN ENROLLMENT? You’ll never know unless you go. Compare your current plan to new options. See if you can lower some costs or find a plan that better suits your needs. Many people do. Even if you like your current plan, check to see if the costs or coverage are changing at medicare.gov or call 1-800-MEDICARE for help. MEDICARE OPEN ENROLLMENT October 15 - December 7 Call GeorgiaCares, 770-538-2650, to speak to a counselor or for information about an event near you! GeorgiaCares Local Help for People with Medicare LEGACY LINK Area Agency on Aging
