Jacksonville, Fla.-- The chair of the city's finance committee is frustrated after seeing some JSO-appointed employees received pay raises.
Action News obtained a list of every JSO employee and their salary. We went through the list line by line and discovered more than 700 people are getting raises.
It's frustrating to a mother of two who just lost her job. "It doesn't make sense," said Judy Magyar.
City Councilman John Crescimbeni agrees. "Not much adds up for me when it comes to the sheriff," said Crescimbeni.
It's no secret city leaders and the sheriff are butting heads over the budget. The sheriff cut hundreds of positions and threatened to close a drug rehab home. Ironically he found extra money this week to cover outstanding workman's comp claims. It all has Crescimbeni even more concerned. After looking through the chart, we found some appointed employees are getting pay raises. Some are as much as 10, 20, even 30 percent.
We asked Crescimbeni if the sheriff could get rid of those positions with the double-digit increase. "Well the sheriff says no. He needs everyone," said Crescimbeni. "Civilian workers are not on the street. When this is a tough economy that's something to consider."
A spokesperson for the sheriff's office says they aren't raises. It could've been a change in position or step raises, depending on how long people worked at JSO. That answer isn't good enough for Crescimbeni or one mother, especially when they are making tough cuts. "The sheriff laid off inexpensive CSOs. I'm closing libraries certain days. It's inconsistent with the groups in local government.
AJSO spokesperson says the agency is working to get Action News explanations for why it appears some employees received raises. City Council will vote on the final budget next Tuesday.
