Ouray City Administrator Silas Clarke this week gave every city employee a 5 percent pay raise, a move he said was needed to boost sagging morale in workers who haven’t received a salary increase for years.

Clarke, who said he discussed the plan with city councilors individually, unveiled it to the public for the first time during Monday’s City Council meeting. The pay raises took effect April 3.

The salary increases affect 22 full-time employees and 29-part-time employees and will cost the ci...