City employees urge council to apply comp-study pay fixes before COLA; council met in closed session on negotiations

Eric, vice president of the rank-and-file unit, told the council during public comment that the city’s sequencing of pay changes has undercut the corrective purpose of a recent compensation study. "Apply the comp study results first to establish the market equity and then apply the COLA so inflation adjustments are built on an accurate wage," he said, arguing that doing COLA first ‘‘minimizes the long term impact of market corrections’’ and compounds pay disparities over time.

Bashir Mateen, a 25-year staff member and treasurer for the rank-and-file unit, recounted the timeline: the compensation study was completed in 2023, provided to the union in April 2024, and the city began implementation in December 2024. He said the city implemented a 3 percent across‑the‑board COLA before applying the study adjustments, leaving many positions approximately 3 percent behind market and rendering the COLA ineffective for underpaid staff. He noted the memorandum of understanding (MOU) the union tentatively agreed to lists the implementation order as the compensation study first and the COLA second and that the MOU remained unsigned by the union.

Council convened to closed session later in the meeting under Government Code Section 54957.6 to discuss labor negotiators. On returning to open session the city attorney reported the council met in closed session with all members present and "no final reportable action was taken." The transcript does not record any further direction to staff or a formal resolution regarding sequencing of the compensation and COLA changes.

Background: Union speakers emphasized morale, retention and the long-term effects of sequencing on base pay and future COLA calculations. No formal motion or vote on the sequence was taken during the open meeting; the discussion was raised as public comment and addressed in closed session on labor negotiations.

Next steps: The transcript does not record a formal next step or schedule for resolving the sequencing dispute; the union representatives said they look forward to further negotiations.