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Ala. city approves COVID-19 hazard pay for firefighters, police and COs

Each employee eligible for hazard pay will receive a 5% raise based on their base salary

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The Birmingham City Council approved $500,000 to provide hazard pay for nearly 2,000 city employees. City employees who directly deal with the public are eligible.

Photo/Birmingham City Council Facebook

By Anna Beahm
Alabama Media Group

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The Birmingham City Council on Tuesday OK’d $500,000 to provide hazard pay to half the city employees: The 2,000 who directly interact with the public.

Each eligible employee will receive a 5 percent raise based on their base salary for hours worked. For example, if your paycheck is $1,000, five percent would be $50, thus your total check would be $1,050.

The $500,000 came from transfers from several city accounts into the city’s COVID-19 fund. The $500,000 will cover one month’s pay. Most of the money was transferred from an appropriation for Indy Racing League events at Barber Motorsports Park, according to the ordinance.

Mayor Randall Woodfin said 1,976 employees are eligible for hazard pay. Here’s the breakdown of the number of eligible employees from each department:

  • Finance department - 29 employees
  • Fire and rescue - 606 employees
  • Mayor’s office - 10 employees
  • Municipal court - 90 employees
  • Planning, engineering and permits - 100 employees
  • Police and corrections - 922 employees
  • Public works - 219 employees

City officials say they haven’t received guidance on what reimbursement is available from the federal government, but that the city is seeking reimbursement.