Weber County implements pay increases for sworn staff with efforts to retain employees

WEBER COUNTY, Utah (ABC4) — Weber County has approved a budget increase of $2 million for public safety sworn positions.

Last year, Weber County partnered with Baker Tilley to conduct a compensation study and to ensure the county is aligned with current market rates.

“The compensation study has been a collaborative effort among Baker Tilly, the Human Resources Department, the Commissioners, the Sheriff’s Office and other county departments,” Sharon Bolos, Weber County commissioner, said. “We want to make sure Weber County is competitive in the job market, pays our employees fairly and retains top talent.”

Jessika Clark, Weber County’s Public Relations Manager, said, “A huge focus of this study is stay competitive in the market, to make sure that our employees are paid fairly and equitably, but to also take care of employees.”

“We want to attract and retain a highly qualified workforce and so I think that was a driving factor of this wage study,” Clark added.

Baker Tilly reportedly collected data on Weber County’s pay rates and data from other outside agencies, both within and outside of Utah, as a comparison.

While the study is not fully finalized, preliminary results show that Weber County’s sworn positions and pay grades are behind other market positions. However, sworn roles are experiencing rapid growth.

Bolos says they chose to implement pay raises for sworn staff while the study results are still being finalized. She said, “We felt that, because some of our positions in the Sheriff’s Office were so low, below market, that we wanted to implement it early and get those pay increases in place.

Effective August 30, 2025, sworn staff will see increased pay.

Based on the Baker Tilly study’s recommendations, sworn staff will see either a raise of 2% per year within their first five years of employment, and then a 3% per year raise between six and ten years of employment, or a flat 2% adjustment.

This pay increase “mitigates compression by recognizing time in position and specifically supports the continued engagement of deputies and corporals within the 6–10 year range—all while remaining within budgetary limits,” according to the study.

Additionally, Bolos says it helps ensure fair pay for supervisory roles.

In 2026, Weber County will consider additional pay adjustments for other positions, with a proposed additional $1 million increase.

Reportedly, the total proposed pay increases will likely not result in tax increases. Instead, the compensation increases will be funded by ongoing attrition savings and shifts in capital projects funding year-over-year.

The full Baker Tilly study can be found here.

Alexa McFadden contributed to this story.