Newspaper Page Text
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
