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, 2025 Sunnyvale Minimum Wage of $19.00 per hour, (2) Increase the Councilmember and Mayor Stipend Amounts Pursuant to City Charter Section 605, and (3) Move the 3.5% Lead Worker/Supervisor Premium Pay for Attorneys into Base Salary
Report
BACKGROUND
This report recommends amending the City’s Salary Resolution and Schedule of Pay to make three changes:
(1) Update the pay rates for applicable classifications to reflect the 2025 City of Sunnyvale minimum wage, as required by Sunnyvale Municipal Code section 3.80.040.
(2) Increase the Councilmember and Mayor stipend amounts for 2025 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).
(3) Move the 3.5% Lead Worker/Supervisor premium pay for attorneys (Category K) into base salary.
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 results 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 in three areas.
As of January 1, 2025, the City of Sunnyvale minimum wage will increase by 2.4% using the methodology in the municipal code, from $18.55 to $19.00 per hour. There are approximately 100 Casual/Temporary employees who will be impacted by 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 2024 was 2.85%; therefore, the annual cost of living increase for 2025 will be 2.85%. Consistent with the City Charter, the calendar year 2025 stipend will be increased from $3,027.59 to $3,113.88 per month for council members, and from $4,036.79 to $4,151.84 per month for the mayor.
Employees in Category K, comprised of all attorneys reporting to the City Attorney, are at-will under the City Charter. Currently, Category K employees are unrepresented and receive a 3.5% Lead Worker/Supervisor premium pay that aligns with a benefit that unrepresented classified managers receive. Staff recommends ending the premium pay and instead increasing the applicable salary ranges and pay rates for those employees by 3.5%. This approach will provide better salary transparency in recruitments for Category K positions, help distinguish attorney positions from unrepresented classified managers, and better align with the department size and structure, and the unique role of Category K positions. Four employees will be impacted by this change. The effective date of all of these new pay rates will be the start of the pay period inclusive of January 1, 2025, which is December 22, 2024.
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 2024/25 Adopted Budget includes escalation factors for casual salaries and the City Council increases. The actual increases are lower than planned, and current year increases will be absorbed within respective department budgets.
There is no fiscal impact from the proposed change for the employees in Category K.
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, 2025 Sunnyvale Minimum Wage of $19.00 per hour, (2) Increase the Councilmember and Mayor Stipend Amounts Pursuant to City Charter Section 605, and (3) Move the 3.5% Lead Worker/Supervisor Premium Pay for Attorneys into Base Salary.
Levine Act
LEVINE ACT
The Levine Act (Gov. Code Section 84308) prohibits city officials from participating in certain decisions regarding licenses, permits, and other entitlements for use if the official has received a campaign contribution of more than $250 from a party, participant, or agent of a party or participant in the previous 12 months. The Levine Act is intended to prevent financial influence on decisions that affect specific, identifiable persons or participants. For more information see the Fair Political Practices Commission website: www.fppc.ca.gov/learn/pay-to-play-limits-and-prohibitions.html
An “X” in the checklist below indicates that the action being considered falls under a Levine Act category or exemption:
SUBJECT TO THE LEVINE ACT
___ Land development entitlements
___ Other permit, license, or entitlement for use
___ Contract or franchise
EXEMPT FROM THE LEVINE ACT
___ Competitively bid contract*
_ __ Labor or personal employment contract
_X_ General policy and legislative actions
* "Competitively bid" means a contract that must be awarded to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder.
Staff
Prepared by: Kristin Armbruster, Human Resources Manager
Reviewed by: Tina Murphy, Director, Human Resources
Reviewed by: Dennis Jaw, Interim Director of Finance
Reviewed by: Sarah Johnson-Rios, Assistant City Manager
Approved by: Tim Kirby, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Resolution Amending Salary Resolution and Schedule of Pay