The Town of South Berwick shall provide a Position Classification and Pay Plan, which shall provide the basis of compensation for persons employed by the Town government and ensure that the compensation system is consistent, understandable, and fair. It shall be the responsibility of the Town Council to approve and adopt the Position Classification and Pay Plan and decide within the annual budget process what aggregate moneys are to be allocated for employee salaries and the responsibility of the Town Manager to implement and administer the Position Classification and Pay Plan, including the assigning of positions to the appropriate classifications, pay grades, and pay steps. The Position Classification and Pay Plan and its respective revisions shall be included as an appendix to this policy.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: The Position Classification and Pay Plan is on file in the Town offices.
Compensation shall take into consideration the relative difficulty and responsibility existing between various classes and the prevailing pay for similar types of work in the relevant public and private labor market.
The Town Manager shall maintain an inventory of the positions in the Town government by classification. These positions shall be organized so that groups or classes of positions having similar functional characteristics have the same or similar classifications.
The Pay Plan shall provide a schedule of minimum-maximum salary ranges for each job classification. The Pay Plan shall be prepared and periodically revised in light of labor market realities.
A. 
The Pay Plan shall be adjusted annually on July 1 to reflect a cost-of-living change. The cost-of-living percentage shall be based on the previous 12 months' United States consumer price index measured from January 1 to December 31 of the prior year as calculated by the Maine Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Standards.
B. 
Probationary employees shall be paid at a rate lower than the minimum rate applicable to the position classification for which they are hired. These rates are listed under the column headed "probationary rates" in the Pay Plan. The Town Manager may make exceptions on all starting or probationary salaries for an applicant with unusual experience or education.
C. 
In order to provide motivation to employees to improve performance and to reward employees for their performance, pay raises and step increases shall be based solely on performance. The Town Manager shall have the authority to implement and administer the Merit Pay Plan. A Merit Pay Plan and revisions shall be included as an appendix to this policy.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: The Merit Pay Plan is on file in the Town offices.