REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Adopt a Resolution Amending the City's Salary Resolution and the Schedule of Pay to (1) Update Pay Rates for Casual Employee Classifications to Reflect the January 1, 2020 Sunnyvale Minimum Wage, and the Councilmember and Mayoral Stipend Amount; (2) Implement Minor Administrative Changes to the Salary Resolution and Schedule of Pay; (3) Add a new System Code to the Intern Classification to Allow for Seasonal Interns; and (4) Add a new Classification of Management Fellow.
Report
BACKGROUND
This Report presents for Council consideration a resolution 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 2020 minimum wage of $16.05;
• increase the Councilmember and Mayoral Stipend amount for 2020 in accordance with City Charter Section 603. (cost of living adjustment based on CPI-U);
• approve various administrative changes to reduce duplicative maintenance efforts and aid in data cleansing in preparation for the Enterprise Planning Resource (ERP) implementation project;
• update the system codes for the casual intern classification to allow seasonal interns; and
• add a new classification, for a full-time term-limited Management Fellow
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 603. 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).
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
The Department of Human Resources intends to initiate a semi-annual process of presenting to Council recommended updates to the Salary Resolution and the associated Salary Tables. The purpose for this practice would be to set a regular schedule for changes due to Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) or other policy requirements to come before Council for approval. In addition, it will set a consistent schedule for any new requests to be routed through internal processes.
Below is an explanatory list of the recommended changes for this amendment:
1. Incorporate 2020 minimum wage and council stipend rates in the Salary Table
As of January 1, 2020, the City of Sunnyvale minimum wage will be $16.05 per hour. There are approximately 87 casual employees who will be impacted by this change. Due to the nature of time collection for employees, the effective date of the new hourly rates will be the start of the pay period (December 29, 2019). Effective January 1, 2020, the Councilmember stipend will be $2,645.69 per month and the Mayoral stipend will be $3,527.59 per month, consistent with City Charter section 603 which provides for annual cost of living increases based on CPI-U.
2. Minor administrative changes in the Salary Resolution and Schedule of Pay to reduce duplicative maintenance and aid in data cleansing for the Enterprise Planning Resource (ERP) implementation project
a. Changes to the Salary Resolution:
• Elimination of temporary employee vacation sections 3.800-3.810. The last temporary employee who was eligible to accrue vacation leave has separated from City service. No future employees are eligible for this leave, and references to it can be removed.
• Inclusion of PARS-ARS information as sections 5.745-5.747. Although approved by Council on September 28, 2010 (RTC No. 10-264), the language involving PARS-ARS was not previously incorporated into the Salary Resolution.
• Removal of language that is duplicated in applicable Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs). The following sections are recommended for removal from the Salary Resolution as the language materially duplicates language contained in applicable MOUs:
o Section 3.625 - State Disability Insurance
o Section 4.200 - Call-back Pay
o Section 5.561 - Health Care Reimbursement Account for Pay Category A
o Section 6.150 - Flex Schedules
• Update to section 5.100 - Uniforms. To comply with a CalPERS requirement to include the rates reported as the value of provided uniforms in a publicly available document.
• Revision to Sections 3.900 and 3.910- Administrative Leave. Remove six-month duration in unit to qualify for Administrative Leave eligibility. As both a recruitment/retention tool and to simplify system processes around paid leaves in advance of the ERP implementation, the City is recommending modifying this eligibility requirement for Administrative Leave, whereby the employee will receive this benefit upon hire, prorated depending on time of year.
• Minor housekeeping clean-up.
b. Changes to the Schedule of Pay:
• Wage scale code updates. The effort to clean up system data in preparation for the new ERP system includes consolidating duplicate wage scales. The proposed changes will not result in salary changes for incumbent employees.
• Update Housing Program Specialist salary scale. The Housing Program Specialist classification is assigned to a wage scale that is substantially the same as the Public Works Construction Inspector. In order to reduce extraneous wage scales, staff is requesting to align the wage scale of the Housing Program Specialist with Public Works Construction Inspector. This results in an increase of $0.0003 per hour. There are currently no incumbent employees in the Housing Program Specialist classification.
• Update the NOVA Youth Worker rates. The Casual NOVA Youth Worker classification is recommended to include a rate for step 4, allowing for recognition of the employees who have achieved substantial milestones. With the addition of this new step rate, the rates for step 2 and step 3 were recalibrated from the new minimum wage.
3. New system code for Casual Seasonal Interns
The Department of Human Resources is requesting to revise the existing casual intern structure to add a Seasonal Intern. Seasonal Interns would be allowed to work up to 40 hours per week, similar to other casual classifications that have been designated as seasonal. With this flexibility, the City will be able to provide internships for college and university students where a 40 hour per week internship is a graduation requirement. Additionally, this provides an opportunity for full time student internships during summer and/or holiday breaks. Creation of this classification provides an additional opportunity to introduce potential employees to public service expanding the future candidate pool. The casual intern classification is not represented by a bargaining unit.
4. Create a new classification of Management Fellow.
This classification would offer college graduates and Master’s students the opportunity to work for one of Sunnyvale's departments as a management fellow for two to three years. The fellowship program aims to provide talented individuals with the opportunity to gain work experience in the public sector and contribute to the City's efforts to increase efficiency and enhance how the organization serves its residents. The City could offer a variety of fellowship opportunities geared towards individuals with different specializations.
Fellowships are streamlined developmental programs tailored to promote employment opportunities in local government. Through the fellowship program, we can create an additional avenue to attract new City employees to help address the skills gaps faced in local government with the labor shortage and increased retirements. The program is designed for recent postgraduate candidates as well as current Master's program students in their last semester of school.
The Management Fellow classification would be designated as term limited (TL), with a maximum limit of three years. Fellows would be unclassified and unrepresented. For purposes of wage increases/decreases, benefits and leaves, Category TL employees would receive the same treatment as Category B employees.
FISCAL IMPACT
The increase in the Councilmember and Mayoral Stipend is approximately $4,000 and was accounted for in the FY 2019/20 Recommended Budget. 87 current Casual employees will receive an increase from their current rate of pay due to the minimum wage change. Casual classifications are temporary and the number of hours that are worked can vary, therefore impact in the future will depend on the number of employees and hours worked. Departments that employ Casual workers will absorb the cost increases due to this change within their existing budgets. It is not anticipated that this change will have any material impact on the City's financial position going forward.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Council agenda on the City's official-notice bulletin board outside City Hall, at the Sunnyvale Senior Center, Community Center and Department of Public Safety; and by making the agenda and report available at the Sunnyvale Public Library, the Office of the City Clerk and on the City's website.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Adopt a Resolution Amending the City's Salary Resolution and the Schedule of Pay to (1) Update Pay Rates for Casual Employee Classifications to Reflect the January 1, 2020 Sunnyvale Minimum Wage, and the Councilmember and Mayoral Stipend Amount; (2) Implement Minor Administrative Changes to the Salary Resolution and Schedule of Pay; (3) Add a new System Code to the Casual Intern Classification to Allow for Seasonal Interns; and (4) Add a new Classification of Management Fellow.
Staff
Prepared by: Michelle Ahlberg, Human Resources Manager
Reviewed by: Tina Murphy, Director, Human Resources
Reviewed by: Teri Silva, Assistant City Manager
Approved by: Kent Steffens, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Resolution with Redline Salary Resolution and Redline Salary Table