Consultants tell La Verne board city pay is below market; recommend 9% pay-grade increase, $2.98 million estimated cost

La Verne — Consultants from BTA presented findings at the Jan. 29 workshop that show most city pay grades lag local market medians and recommended a citywide adjustment to the pay structure.

Beth Thompson of BTA told the board that, using a market-median (50th-percentile) comparison to selected municipal and private‑sector benchmarks, “all of your jobs today are about 8.3% below the current market rates” and that employees, on average, are “about 10.7% below the market rate.” The study found 37% of employees currently earn less than 85% of the market rate.

Recommendation and cost

BTA recommended a 9% increase to overall pay grades as the primary structural adjustment so the city becomes more competitive for hiring. Thompson summarized the proposal: “First of all, what we would recommend is a 9% increase to your overall pay grades.” She said the minimum increase any employee would receive under the proposed structure is 9% and that the average across employees would be about 11.4%.

BTA projected the pay-structure adjustment at just under $2,400,000; added costs for payroll taxes and retirement raised the total to about $2,980,000. The consultants said the recommendation also includes reassigning 23 job classifications to higher pay grades and creating new step distinctions to improve career progression.

Police pay and stipends

The study proposed a new distinction between Patrol Officer 1 and Patrol Officer 2 so that new hires and certified officers enter at higher starting steps. BTA also recommended converting some hourly stipends for advanced courses (Northwestern and FBI National Academy) into one-time step increases on completion rather than ongoing hourly pay.

Board reaction and next steps

Board members asked how the consultant benchmarks compare to nearby jurisdictions and whether total compensation — including health insurance paid by the city — was factored into comparisons. Thompson said the study focuses on salaries and did not compute total compensation (benefits were discussed separately); staff noted the city provides 100% employee/dependent health coverage, which leadership said is a relevant recruitment differentiator.

Staff and consultants said the study’s figures will be forwarded to the budget team; any adoption of the recommendations would occur through the budget process. No formal budget approval or salary changes were adopted at the workshop.

Reporting note: Direct quotations are taken from the Jan. 29 workshop transcript and attributed to Beth Thompson and BTA as recorded.