AP: Shannon OK’s Raises For House Staff
Okla. House speaker OKs hefty raises for staff
By SEAN MURPHY, Associated Press
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — While Gov. Mary Fallin and legislative leaders waited for the completion of an independent study on state employee pay, House Speaker T.W. Shannon approved more than a quarter of a million dollars in annual pay increases for his staff, according to House documents released Monday.
The salary figures, initially requested by the Tulsa World, show about half of the 117 House employees received raises totaling more than $280,000 annually. The pay hikes for 52 House employees took effect July 1 and ranged from about 2 percent for a housekeeper to more than 30 percent each for three staff attorneys.
The news frustrated some state workers, because Fallin and legislative leaders delayed action on pay increases this year while they waited for a $200,000 independent study on employee compensation. State employees have not received an across-the-board pay increase since 2006, and the study released last week, showed state workers in Oklahoma earn about 7 percent less in pay and benefits than the private market.