Modernizing the township's pay structure and benefits
The West Chester Township Board of Trustees voted to approve the new employee compensation structure introduced by months-long compensation study at its June 24 meeting.
“We want West Chester Township to remain competitive in this tight labor market, while also restructuring our compensation and benefits in a sustainable and responsible way,” Township Administrator Lisa Brown said. “This new structure honors the experience of long-serving employees while also making West Chester an attractive place to start and grow a career in public service.”
The study, conducted by McGrath Human Resources Group, analyzed West Chester’s compensation and benefits systems in comparison to 31 peer public-sector organizations.
The approved plan introduces a range-based salary structure, aligning the Township’s compensation philosophy to the 60th percentile of the local public sector market. The new plan includes a range-based salary system with a 40 percent spread between minimum and maximum salaries. Minimum salaries are set at a 15 percent spread below the midpoint to strengthen recruitment efforts for entry-level roles.
Several benefit enhancements are also included. A new paid parental leave policy offers up to four weeks of salary continuation (two weeks at 100% coverage and two weeks at 50% coverage). The Township’s short-term disability benefit has also been expanded to provide up to 14 weeks at 50 percent pay following the use of available leave. Employees will also have access to a 10% discount at a local daycare provider.
in addition, new Lifestyle Reimbursement Account will allow full-time employees to be reimbursed up to $500 annually for eligible expenses such as child care and gym memberships. Changes to vacation accrual policies will shorten the timeline for increased leave based on years of service, and new hires will receive one personal day.
The Board of Trustees emphasized that the compensation package was implemented under budget. Although the Township had allocated a 6 percent increase for the plan, the final cost totaled just 5.67 percent.
“We want to take care of our people while also being fiscally responsible, and I think the compensation study recommendations do a great job of balancing those objectives,” said Mark Welch, president of the Board of Trustees.
The study included input from employees through meetings with department heads and 55 submitted position questionnaires, as well as a detailed market compensation analysis. The final adopted recommendations address both market alignment and internal salary equity across departments.
West Chester Township will begin implementation of the new compensation structure and benefits in the coming months, with all benefits changes expected to be completed and operational by January 2026.