April 6th, 2023 by WCBC Radio

While City of Cumberland employees may be looking forward to a 11% wage hike, city residents are wondering how that raise is going to affect their service rates in the coming year.  Mayor Ray Morriss was on the Dave Norman show on Tuesday morning and went over how the raise package came about. The price tag is $1.8 million and is inclusive of salary, benefits and retirement costs. However, the mayor does not see it coming to resident’s fees.

The $1.8 million dollar raise package that City of Cumberland employees will be getting was done in part to keep employees from moving to other jobs at the county or out of the area.  The raise was a market based decision endorsed by the City Administrator, Chief Financial Officer, and Director of Administrative Services. Mayor Morriss explained where the money is coming from to cover the expense of the raise.