Dispatchers and a variety of other city employees will be receiving a 12 percent wage hike following Monday evening’s Ceres City Council ratification of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with their union.
The city and Laborers’ International Union of North America (LiUNA) has been meeting since April to hammer out an agreement, which takes effect immediately.
The pay increase consists of an 8 percent cost of living increase coupled with an additional 4% equity adjustment. The agreement applies to all public safety dispatchers, wastewater operators and water distribution operators.
Late last year the council began receiving a drumbeat of complaints from dispatchers that pay and long work hours were causing burnout and employees to abandon their important posts for better paying cities. One of those dispatchers who were most vocal, Ashley Shaw, has already moved on.
City Manager Doug Dunford said that the equity increase is an effort to bring Ceres’ wages more in line with what other cities are offering and prevent the hemorrhaging of employees to other agencies.
“It’s targeting areas where we are losing people like dispatchers and wastewater and water people,” said Dunford. He said there are few qualified workers in those fields and acknowledged that Ceres was “underpaying them.”
Since coming to Ceres last year, Dunford has witnessed a shortage of employees to fill authorized positions for the wastewater treatment plant and water system. While the city is still behind, it’s a game of playing catchup now.
“We’re in fairly good shape with dispatchers, hiring left and right. I think we’re down to one (to fill) now.”
Bargaining unit members who work 10 or more continuous years of full-time service with the city shall be eligible for an additional five percent wage increase.
The sewer and water operators covered by the agreement will also receive an increase in their boot allowance to $250.
Beginning Jan. 1, 2025 the city will contribute the following amounts toward the combined premiums to medical, dental, and vision on a semi-monthly basis:
• $810 monthly for employees enrolled in employee-only medical coverage.
• $1,600 monthly for employees enrolled in employee plus one family member medical coverage.
• $2,250 monthly for employees enrolled in employee and family (more than one dependent) medical coverage.
The city is eliminating the voluntary benefits of $50 semi-monthly over 24 pay periods.
The salary agreement will cost the city approximately $791,597 annually. Most of the increased costs for the current budget were factored in but will require a council amendment of 2024-25 for the additional $143,207.
Councilwoman Rosalinda Vierra wanted to know where the extra funds would come from and was told the details were spelled out in an attachment showing the funds were being taken from reserves.
Ceres resident John Warren expressed concern that the council continues to overspend and noted ARPA funds will not be around next year to plug budget holes.
