City Council Expected to Ratify New Agreement between City and Employees Union Monday

Pasadena City employees who are members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 858 will receive a three-percent salary hike effective August 8, 2016 if the City Council adopts and approves on Monday a new Memorandum of Understanding between the City and the union that the two parties tentatively agreed upon July 19, after months of negotiations.

The three-percent pay hike is one of eight significant provisions in the new agreement that replaces the old one-year MOU that expired June 30.

In an Agenda Report for the City Council’s meeting Monday, Pasadena City Human Resources Director Jennifer Curtis said the City and the local AFSCME started negotiations about a new MOU in May and reached a tentative agreement last month. Members of AFSCME Local 858 ratified the agreement on July 27.

The new MOU will be in effect July 1, 2015 until June 30, 2018 once approved by the City Council.

Aside from the salary hike, other major provisions that have been ratified and is recommended for City Council approval are the following:

Effective on the pay period that includes July 1, 2017, all bargaining unit members will receive a 2.5 percent base salary increase .

Effective the pay period that includes August 8, 2016 and following City Council approval of the 2015-2018 MoU, all bargaining unit members will receive a one-time lump sum payment in the amount of $1,650.

Employees assigned to a stand-by/on-call list will be compensated at the rate of $1.50 per hour while on stand-by (from $1 per hour).

Annual boot allowance for eligible employees will be increased to $200 (from $175).

Employees pursuing a degree or certificate in a job related field are eligible for tuition reimbursement in the amount of $1,000 per fiscal year (from $750).

The City will provide employees in Human Services & Recreation with five uniforms to comply with department guidelines for attire. The City will replace uniforms for Human Services & Recreation employees as necessary due to standard wear and tear.

The Human Resources department says the agreement will cost about $2.85 million to implement, with ongoing costs of $1.5 million annually. About 33 percent of the cost will be funded through the General Fund. For fiscal year 2017, the cost of the agreement will be $1.35 million.

Under the FY 2017 Operating Budget, a provision for $512,090 has been included to cover anticipated salary increases as negotiations were ongoing. The remaining fiscal impact for 2017, about $838,000, will be absorbed into each affected department’s Operating Budget, according to the Human Resources Department report.

In June, Pasadena City employees staged a series of actions to press City Hall to approve salary increases, including a mass sick leave by about 260 out of the 300 union members on June 17.

On June 20, rank and file members of the AFSCME Local 858 filled the Pasadena City Council Chambers to demand for better recognition and better benefits as negotiations were at a standstill. The City Council later met with labor representatives in closed session.