THE TICKING CLOCK: A Sinking Ship and Shattered Morale Across Lawrence County

The tips are flooding into our inbox, and the devastating reality of the county's health insurance change is hitting a boiling point.

Let’s be completely clear: this is a full-blown crisis hitting every single frontline employee who keeps Lawrence County running. From the highway garage and jail staff to courthouse clerks and emergency dispatchers, morale across our county workforce has plummeted to an all-time low. The dedicated people we rely on every day are feeling completely abandoned by leadership.

We have reviewed an internal county email confirming that open enrollment through JA Benefits is actively running, and workers are facing a strict deadline of July 15th. With exactly 9 days left on the clock, the numbers hitting our county staff are completely unsustainable.

The Insurance Hit: One veteran county employee who currently pays $108 every two weeks (around $216 a month) just logged in to view her new options. The cost? A staggering $995.10 to $1,295.57 per month.

The County Council's decision is forcing frontline workers to surrender one entire paycheck every single month just to maintain health coverage. This isn't a benefit adjustment—it's a financial eviction, and employees have just over a week to sign their names to it.

Why is morale at an absolute breaking point county-wide? Because when the County Council and Commissioners freeze frontline wages down to the penny and price dedicated workers out of their healthcare, they create a culture of extreme burnout.

Experienced, long-time employees across all departments are actively looking for the exits because they simply cannot afford to work for Lawrence County anymore.

With the July 15th deadline looming, the County Council and Commissioners cannot hide behind administrative silence. They created this crisis, and they need to answer to the taxpayers and their workforce immediately.