EMS pay raise OK’d

 The Clay County Board of Commissioners voted a raise of more than $1 an hour to emergency medical technicians and paramedics with the intent to entice them to remain in Clay County. 

The board voted unanimously Thursday evening to increase the salaries to at least $1.06 per hour. The current hourly rate of pay had been $15.62. The increase will raise the rate to $16.68. 

“We have a shortage of qualified EMTs and paramedics. It’s a national problem. We can’t afford to lose them,” Clay County Manager Mark Pullium told the commissioners. “To maintain a stable workforce we need to be at or above the local marketplace.”