REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Adopt a Resolution Amending the City's Salary Resolution and Schedule of Pay to (1) Update Pay Rates for Casual/Temporary Classifications to Reflect the January 1, 2024 Sunnyvale Minimum Wage of $18.55 per Hour, and (2) Increase the Councilmember and Mayor Stipend Amounts Pursuant to City Charter Section 605
Report
BACKGROUND
This report recommends amending the City’s Salary Resolution and Schedule of Pay in accordance with Section 3.80.040 of the Sunnyvale Municipal Code to update the pay rates for applicable classifications to reflect the 2024 minimum wage and increase the Councilmember and Mayor stipend amount for 2024 in accordance with City Charter Section 605, which provides for annual cost of living adjustments based on the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U).
EXISTING POLICY
Council Policy 7.3.1 Legislative Management - Goals and Policies - Goal 7.3D: Maintain a quality workforce, consistent with state and federal laws, City Charter, and adopted policies in order to assure that City services are provided in an effective, efficient, and high quality manner.
Council Policy 7.3.1 Legislative Management - Goals and Policies - Policy 7.3D.1: Maintain a recruitment and selection process that ensures a highly competent workforce.
City Charter Section 605. Compensation: Annually on January 1, the compensation of the Council and Mayor shall increase by a percentage equal to the percentage increase in the preceding October’s 12-month rolling average of the Consumer Price Index - Urban (CPI-U) for San Francisco- Oakland-Hayward. In no event shall the CPI-U compensation adjustment exceed 5% per year or result in a compensation decrease.
Sunnyvale Municipal Code Section 3.80.040 (Minimum Wage) requires that the City’s minimum wage be adjusted by the “Bay Area Consumer Price Index (Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA for All Items) or its successor index as published by the U.S. Department of Labor or its successor agency, with the amount of the minimum wage increase rounded to the nearest multiple of five cents” in August of each year and that the adjustment to the City’s minimum wage shall become effective as the new minimum wage on January 1st” of the following year.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The action being considered does not constitute a “project” with the meaning of the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15378(b)(4) in that is a fiscal activity that does not involve any commitment to any specific project which may result in a potential significant impact on the environment, and section 15378(b)(5) in that it is a governmental organizational or administrative activity that will not result in direct or indirect changes in the environment.
DISCUSSION
This report recommends adopting a resolution amending the City’s Salary Resolution and Schedule of Pay. Effective January 1, 2024, the City of Sunnyvale minimum wage will increase by 3.3%, from $17.95 to $18.55 per hour, using the methodology in the Sunnyvale Municipal Code. There are approximately 100 Casual/Temporary employees who will receive a salary increase due to this change.
City Charter Section 605 provides Council with annual cost of living increases based on CPI-U, not to exceed 5%. The rolling average of the CPI-U of the 12 months preceding October 2023 was 3.92%; therefore, the annual cost of living increase for 2024 will be 3.92%. Consistent with the City Charter, the Council stipend for calendar year 2024 will be increased from $2,913.38 to $3,027.59 per month, and the Mayor stipend will be increased from $3,884.52 to $4,036.79 per month.
The effective date of these new rates will be the start of the pay period inclusive of January 1, 2024, which is December 24, 2023.
FISCAL IMPACT
Casual classifications are temporary, and the number of hours worked can vary. Therefore, specific departmental and funding source impacts will depend on the number of casual/temporary employees and hours worked. Council compensation is budgeted in the operating program for the Office of the City Manager and funded by the General Fund, with recovery across all funds through indirect costs.
The FY 2023/24 Adopted Budget includes escalation factors for casual salaries and the City Council increases. The actual increases are higher than planned, with an estimated impact of approximately $14,467 per year or $361,665 over twenty years across all funds. The current year increases will be absorbed within respective department budgets and adjusted for the FY 2024/25 Recommended Budget.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Council meeting agenda on the City's official-notice bulletin board at City Hall, at the Sunnyvale Public Library and in the Department of Public Safety Lobby. In addition, the agenda and this report are available at the NOVA Workforce Services reception desk located on the first floor of City Hall at 456 W. Olive Avenue (during normal business hours), and on the City's website.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Adopt a Resolution amending the City's Salary Resolution and Schedule of Pay to (1) update Pay Rates for Casual/Temporary Classifications to reflect the January 1, 2024 Sunnyvale Minimum Wage of $18.55 per hour, and (2) Increase the Councilmember and Mayor Stipend amounts Pursuant to City Charter Section 605.
Staff
Prepared by: Kristin Armbruster, Human Resources Manager
Reviewed by: Tina Murphy, Director, Human Resources
Reviewed by: Sarah Johnson-Rios, Assistant City Manager
Approved by: Kent Steffens, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Resolution with Schedule of Pay