The Butler County salary board is divided on how to cut staff after the privatization of the Sunnyview Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.

The salary board members on Monday debated how human resources should be pruned.

County Commissioner Bill McCarrier, board chairman, wants to eliminate one full-time post and replace another with a part-time post which won’t exceed 1,000 hours annually.

McCarrier said an administrative clerk post, which pays a base salary of $18.17 an hour, won’t be needed after a new automated phone answering system is installed next month.

The commissioner said that job entails other office duties, so a part-time post to be paid $13.25 an hour could assume those tasks.

McCarrier proposed the worker’s compensation and benefits coordinator post be eliminated with those responsibilities divided among the remaining four employees in that office.

By selling Sunnyview, the county reduced its staff by roughly 200 workers. County officials agreed staffing of human resources is one area to be reviewed to cut as a result.

Commissioner Jim Eckstein on Monday offered an alternative to McCarrier’s proposal: don’t replace the administrative clerk and make the coordinator post part-time at 32 hours a week.

Eckstein’s proposal keeps the pay rate of the post at $21.70 an hour.

He said money could be saved by cutting the salary of human resources director Lori Altman since she received an extra 20 percent pay hike in 2011.

At the time, the commissioners justified the increase in part by citing Altman’s on-call status due to Sunnyview being operational 24 hours a day.

After the meeting, Eckstein said a second human resources post could be made part-time.

During the meeting, he said the county faced a possible lawsuit by the worker’s compensation and benefits coordinator, Shari Bennetti.

Eckstein said the county could be accused of age discrimination. Bennetti is in her 60s.

“This is discriminating against one person,” he said.

He referred to Bennetti’s prior legal complaints against the county.

McCarrier said Eckstein shouldn’t be referring to individuals when the discussion is about jobs.

“We’re talking about a position,” McCarrier said.

Eckstein said in an interview the salary of chief county clerk Amy Wilson should also be reduced since she spent time working on Sunnyview issues.

McCarrier disagreed with Eckstein.

“I think it’s all foolishness,” he said about Eckstein’s comments.

Commissioner Dale Pinkerton sided with McCarrier.

County Controller Ben Holland, the other member of the salary board, did not attend the meeting. Holland is at a conference.