Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

Merit raises don't merit okay

Union leaders say city employees will use the ballot box to show their displeasure at the commission vote.

By SHEILA MULLANE ESTRADA
Published October 12, 2005

MADEIRA BEACH - Despite pleas to "be fair" to its employees, the City Commission refused to budge Monday on a 3.5 percent across-the-board pay hike that eliminates merit increases granted in the past.

The pay increases will appear in employee paychecks Oct. 28, no matter the result of a pending required vote of affected employees to accept or reject the pay hike.

The commission's decision may have a longer-term political effect on the city, however.

"We will exercise our legal right to support candidates for public office who will make a commitment they will do a better job of looking out for citizens and employees," said Stephen Sarnoff, president of the Communications Workers of America (CWA), Local 3179.

Sarnoff said the union hopes to "find candidates we can support who have more empathy for employees. We know we have support of many, many citizens."

Once the March election is over, the union will ask the city to reopen contract negotiations. The union's current contract expires Sept. 30, 2006.

Meanwhile, Sarnoff said city employees will continue to work cooperatively with the city manager and city administration.

"We want to keep good relationships with administration. This is not their fault. They had nothing to do with it," Sarnoff said.

That attitude is a far cry from two years ago when anger at the then-city manager led to the resignations of two longtime administrative employees and the formation of the present employee union.

A 2003 survey of city employees showed that most trusted their direct supervisors, but not the city's top managers.

Written comments strongly criticized both former city manager Jim Madden and the commission. Later that year, the employees voted to unionize.

Madden was later fired by the commission. Continuing political wrangling also led to the resignation of the city attorney, Thomas Trask, and longtime mayor, Tom DeCesare.

Monday's special commission meeting was triggered by an official impasse declared by the Communications Workers of America (CWA), Local 3179, when salary negotiations broke down earlier this summer. Under state law, the commission acts as its own mediator in union contract disputes.

The union originally asked for a 3 percent merit increase on top of a 3.5 percent general pay hike. Last week the union offered to drop the general increase to 3.1 percent if the merit pay was reinstated.

"The city always tries to do what is good for the city and its employees; 3.5 percent is what the city feels it could give, what it could afford. It's not because they wanted to punish anybody," said Tom Gonzalez, a labor attorney who represented the city during bargaining with the union.

"City employees are dismayed and discouraged," Steve Burdick, an employee and union vice president, told the commission.

Sarnoff said higher salary hikes granted to firefighters and originally planned for administrative staff made other employees "feel like third-class citizens" who are "not appreciated" by the city.

He argued that sharply rising housing costs will make it difficult for the city to find new employees unless the pay scale is "competitive" with the area.

"I'm sorry if it doesn't appeal to people, but it is fair under the circumstances," Mayor Charles Parker said.

Commissioner Martha Boos was particularly angry over Sarnoff's accusation that the city does not appreciate its employees.

"I have never heard any of us say you are unappreciated," she said. "You seem to forget all the other benefits you get. We pay for everything."

Commissioner Arnold Alloway, newly appointed to the board, said he at first thought the city's salary proposal was unfair, but after researching the issue, now believes the 3.5 percent pay hike is a fair offer.

He proposed the city consider changing how it pays employees by instituting a "step-scale" that would specify exact pay rates, instead of the present minimum and maximum ranges for each position. Such a move would permanently eliminate merit pay increases.

[Last modified October 12, 2005, 00:19:18]