PORT ANGELES — The three Port of Port Angeles commissioners have defended their decision to give a 5 percent raise to Port Executive Director Jeff Robb, saying he more than deserved it.
The raise, retroactive to August, jumped Robb’s annual salary from $115,000 to $120,750.
Port employees are in line for a seven-tenths of 1 percent raise for 2011.
Jim McEntire, a Republican candidate for the state House who is campaigning on a platform of fiscal conservatism against Steve Tharinger, one of the three Clallam County commissioners, made the motion Oct. 11 to approve Robb’s raise.
Seconded by commission President John Calhoun, the motion also was approved by port Commissioner George Schoenfeldt, making the raise unanimous.
Calhoun and McEntire said Robb deserved the raise because of his exemplary performance — and to equalize his salary with executive directors that run ports similar in size to Port Angeles.
“In this country we reward excellence, and Jeff’s performance has been excellent,” McEntire said.
“Fiscal conservatism, fiscal responsibility, does not mean not spending money.
“It means when you do spend money, you spend it wisely.
“Jim McEntire always does the right thing, regardless of the ephemeral political consequences.”
McEntire said the pay raise could have been delayed until after the Nov. 2 general election “so I could have avoided criticism.”
McEntire also noted that Robb “is responsible for the entirety of the port’s performance,” unlike an hourly employee.
McEntire said he had received two calls criticizing the board’s decision.
Calhoun said he did not receive any.
Calhoun said Robb’s biggest accomplishment was that he improved the port’s relationships with Clallam County and the city of Port Angeles.
“Jeff has brought us to a place where we can be working partners,” Calhoun said.
Schoenfeldt agreed with the comments from Calhoun and McEntire.
Robb has been “a great executive director,” Schoenfeldt said.
“He’s a local boy, and I trust he’ll be here. He’s not jumping boat for someplace else.”
Jan Hardin, union president of International Longshore & Warehouse Union Local 27, which represents more than a dozen port employees, said Robb’s raise will likely come up when negotiations on a new contract begin at the end of May 2011.
“Personally, I’d like to see a 5 percent increase, too,” Hardin said.
“I don’t believe that’s available in today’s climate.”
Teamsters Local 589 of Port Angeles represents about a half-dozen employees at the port.
Local 589 representative Dan Taylor said he would not comment.
Both unions are operating under existing contracts under which raises are tied to the consumer price index, Calhoun said.
It would be unusual for the port commission to approve a wage increase beyond what’s in the budget and what’s under contract, though last year, when the index dropped, commissioners kept wages the same.
Robb’s contract includes a $400 monthly car allowance, as it did when he was hired in August 2009.
Robb’s contract calls for him to receive six months of pay if he is terminated but willing and able to perform his duties and has not been involved in an illegal act or other malfeasance.
Robb, a port employee for 26 years and its former airport manager, replaced Bob McChesney, whose salary was $123,350.
“This is not a 9-to-5 job,” Robb said.
“When you are comparing the position against an hourly job, it doesn’t match up.”
Robb was hired at $8,000 less than McChesney made with the understanding that his performance would be evaluated during the ensuing year and increased if he performed well, Robb, Calhoun and McEntire said.
Schoenfeldt said that when Robb became port director in 2009, the port’s spending plan was projected to be $300,000 under budget in 2010.
Now there’s a $1 million surplus, mainly through increased log exports and tanker activity, Robb said.
That’s the kind of thing that went through his mind as he made his way home the night the commissioners gave him the raise.
“When I was driving home at 10:30, I thought, I guess you are earning your income,” Robb said.
By comparison, Port of Port Townsend Executive Director Larry Crockett’s 2010 salary is $110,387, and Crockett does not receive a car allowance.
The Port of Port Townsend has a marina and an airport.
The Port of Port Angeles manages two marinas, a marine terminal and an industrial park, Robb said.
“When you look at comparables, you’ll find that this [salary] is not extraordinary,” Robb said.
Calhoun said the ports of Grays Harbor and Olympia are similar to the Port of Port Angeles.
Port of Olympia Executive Director Ed Galligan receives a $130,646 salary and $600 monthly car mileage allowance and runs a 2010 operating budget of $8.3 million.
Port of Grays Harbor Executive Director Gary Nelson receives a $141,408 salary and a $450 monthly car allowance plus 23 cents per mile and runs a 2010 operating budget of $12.5 million, about twice the size of the Port of Port Angeles’ 2010 spending plan of $6.4 million.
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Senior Writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-417-3536 or at paul.gottlieb@peninsuladailynews.com.
