by George Lewinnek ·
Friday, March 6, 2026
The Select Board voted unanimously on March 3 to provide cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) of 3.34% to nonunion town employees. Such employees include administrative employees in Town Hall, library staff, cable staff, a firefighter, and an ambulance employee.
The town’s Personnel Board voted to recommend this COLA at their 9 a.m. meeting on Feb. 24. The Finance Committee voted to accept and forward this recommendation later the same day.
The Harvard Press has reviewed the data for this recommendation, which was provided by Dawn Dunbar, the town’s human resources director and assistant town administrator. The Press compared that data to what is available online from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Town calculations used the average of consumer price index (CPI) figures over 12 months. This was compared to simpler calculations using only the figure at the end of a 12-month period. The differences were insignificant. The theoretical advantage of using an average is that any one month can be an outlier. The town has used the same method now for years.
The Finance Committee had budgeted for a 3% increase. The committee has now adjusted its budget recommendation to the 3.34% figure.
The BLS figures for the consumer price index for all United States workers (CPI-W) in January was 2.4%. Looking only at the Northeast, however, and for the earlier figures for the 12 months ending September 2025, the numbers were higher.
The CPI-W has risen, on average, 4.05% a year over the last six years, exceeding by a significant margin more recent increases, and also exceeding the 2.5% state limit on new taxes specified by Proposition 2½.
The BLS reported that United States nonfarm workers’ weekly salaries rose 4.2% in January before adjusting for inflation. Real income, after adjustment for inflation, reportedly rose 1.2%.
At least some town residents will not have experienced these increases in their own incomes. Retirees in town whose income depends on investments in the stock market do not get cost-of-living adjustments. Steve Johnson, senior wealth advisor at Ropes Wealth Advisors in Needham, notes that investments are the best hedge against inflation, but at the same time, investments do not really track inflation. He gives the example of the 2022 drop in the S&P 500 index of 20% during a year of continued inflation. Despite times like 2022, the market in general has outpaced inflation—9% (S&P 500) versus 2.4% over the last 25 years.
It is years like 2022 when a retiree may notice the greatest discrepancy between personal income and COLA raises.
Finance director Jared Mullane says that the value received for cost-of-living adjustments involves recruitment and retention of town employees, adding that these raises are especially important for morale. Dunbar echoed Mullane’s statement, saying, “Unlike the private sector, we can’t give bonuses. They [COLAs] are an important boost to morale.”