Leaders clear one hurdle in hopes of raising Myrtle Beach city employee pay

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WMBF) - Awaiting a final approval next month, city employees are one step closer to getting a pay increase after Tuesday’s city council meeting.

“We’re in a very competitive environment right now,” City of Myrtle Beach spokesperson Mark Kruea said. “We need to be able to compete in terms of not only hiring people but keeping people to provide the services that we do.”

Myrtle Beach Fire Department spokesperson Capt. Jon Evans said paramedics and firefighters don’t take the job because of the salary, but still need to pay the bills.

“We have to take care of our families, so it’s always nice to see when council and our community is willing to help us out and do that.”

Under the new proposed pay structure, paramedics would see a $7,000 pay increase, certified police employees would see a $7,500 increase, and all other full-time employees would receive an extra $5,000 annually.

Part-time employees would see an increase of $1.00 or $1.25 per hour depending on the position.

Both Evans and Kruea said this will help with recruitment and retention.

“We love doing this job,” Evans said. “You talk to anybody, they’ll say it’s the best job in the world, but this just helps us continue that.”

Kruea said the pay increase comes from money already in the budget, which means they won’t have to raise any taxes or fees.

However, he said more than just the city employees would benefit from this increase.

“By encouraging our staff to stay, by being able to hire the right folks to fill our police positions, we’re able to provide better service to the public,” Kruea said. “The public will benefit from this directly.”

The city council will have their second and final vote on the proposal at next month’s meeting.

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