SALISBURY — The Rowan County Board of Commissioners called a meeting at 1 p.m. Tuesday to discuss the restructuring of the environmental health department, including new positions and hiring incentives.

The environmental health department has recently sought to fill two environmental health specialist positions within its food and lodging division. At its last regular meeting on Aug. 3, the Rowan County Board of Commissioners approved a request by Director of Public Health Nina Oliver for the ability to offer one-time signing bonuses of up to $5,000 per vacancy to help fill the needed positions.

Rowan County has long struggled to fill the environmental health specialist positions, in part, due to a shortage of qualified individuals in the job market. The Rowan County Human Resources Department recently studied the salaries of various surrounding counties for the same position and concluded that the pay range offered by Rowan County was appropriate and competitive, according to a memo presented to the Board of Commissioners by Human Resources Director Kelly Natoli. The hope is that the addition of a signing bonus would make the position even more attractive.

The special meeting, like others recently, will be held virtually. Citizens can view or listen to the meeting by going online to https://bit.ly/rowanboc0811. The passcode for the meeting is 08112020.