2023 - 2026 SCLEMA Memorandum of Understanding:   Article 4: Salaries and Administration of the Salary Schedule

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What’s on this Page

• 4.1 Salary
  • 4.1.1 Salary Adjustments
  • 4.1.2 Cost of Living Adjustments
  • 4.1.3 Hourly Cash Allowance
• 4.2 Salary Upon Appointment
• 4.3 Consideration Upon Reappointment or Return
• 4.4 Extra Help to Permanent Appointment
• 4.5 Extra Help to Extra Help Appointment
• 4.6 Return of Extra Help Employees
• 4.7 Salary Upon Restoration
• 4.8 Salary Upon Promotion
• 4.9 Advanced Salary Upon Promotion
• 4.10 Salary Upon Demotion During Probation (Failed Probation)
• 4.11 Salary Upon Involuntary Demotion
• 4.12 Salary Upon Voluntary Demotion
• 4.13 Salary Upon Reappointment From Voluntary Demotion
• 4.14 Salary Upon Transfer
• 4.15 Salary Upon Reallocation of Class
• 4.16 Salary Upon Reclassification of Position
• 4.17 Merit Advancement Within Salary Scales
• 4.18 Effective Date of Merit Increase
• 4.19 Salary Upon Temporary Promotion
• 4.20 POST and STC Premiums
  • 4.20.1 POST Premiums
  • 4.20.2 STC Premium
• 4.21 Comparison Agencies

Read Next: Health and Welfare Benefits for Active Employees

Salary scales shall be specified in Appendix A for each classification contained within the unit represented by the Association.

4.1.1   Salary Adjustments

Effective the pay period ending June 12, 2023: The County will increase the A-I steps of each SCLEMA represented benchmark classification by the percentage specified in Appendix A-1. The County will concurrently increase the A-I steps of each SCLEMA represented non-benchmark classification salary scale based on the County’s internal salary administration alignments.

No salaries will be reduced as a result of these adjustments.

4.1.2 Cost of Living Adjustments

During the three year Agreement, the County will provide three salary adjustments for SCLEMA represented classifications. The effective dates and amounts of the cost of living adjustments are as follows:

Effective the pay period that begins June 13, 2023: The County will increase by five percent (5%) the A-I step of each scale in the Salary Table specified in Appendix A and attached to this agreement.

Effective the pay period that begins June 11, 2024: The County will increase by five percent (5%) the A-I step of each scale in the Salary Table specified in Appendix A and attached to this agreement.

Effective the pay period that begins June 10, 2025: The County will increase by three and a half percent (3.5%) the A-I step of each scale in the Salary Table specified in Appendix A and attached to this agreement.

During the four-year Agreement 2019- 2023: For salary increases for years 3 and 4 of the Agreement, the County increased the A-I step of each scale in the Salary Table by at least two percent (2%) and not more than four percent (4%). The actual amount of the increase each year within 2% and 4% was  determined by the lesser amount of the two following calculations:

• The San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward All Urban Annual Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) issued by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in January 2021 and January 2022 for the preceding December percentage change from December of the prior year.
  
  
• The County’s actual annual growth percentage of secured property taxes collected between fiscal years 2018-19 and 2019-20 for the year 3 salary adjustment; and between fiscal years 2019-20 and 2020-21 for the year 4 salary adjustment, divided by 1.15, respectively.  

4.1.3   Hourly Cash Allowance

Effective the pay period that begins July 11, 2023, the County will increase the current I step of each job classification in the Salary Table specified in Appendix A-1 and attached to this agreement by $3.45/hour.  The County will then recalculate each salary range/salary scale in Appendix A from the adjusted I step in order to maintain an approximate 2.5% differential between salary steps consistent with the definition of Salary Range or Salary Scale in Article 3.2 (Definitions).

Effective the first full pay period closest to May 19, 2009, the County shall pay each permanent full and part time employee, in addition to their hourly regular earning rate from the salary schedule, a cash allowance of $3.45 per paid status hour that the employee is in paid status excluding overtime, up to a maximum of 80 hours in a pay period, or approximately a maximum of $600 per month. Such hourly cash allowance is compensation for services rendered in that pay period and shall be taken into account for the purposes of computing employees' final compensation for pension purposes, as well as all usual taxation as their regular earning rate from the salary schedule. It shall not be included on the salary schedule and shall not be impacted by future increases on the salary schedule.  It is not intended as a supplement toward medical, dental, or any other insurance or benefit.

Effective July 11, 2023, the County will reduce the hourly cash allowance to $0.00 per pay status hour that the employee is in paid status, excluding overtime, up to a maximum of 80 hours in a pay period.

In consideration for the foregoing, the County has agreed to increase the I step of the salary scale of each job classification identified in Appendix A by $3.45/hour as set forth in Article 4.1 (Salaries).

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Except as otherwise provided herein, appointment to any position in any class shall be made at the minimum rate, and the advancement to rates greater than the minimum rate shall be within the limits of the salary scale for the class.

In exceptional cases after reasonable effort has been made to obtain employees for a particular class at the minimum rate, employment of individuals who possess special qualifications higher than the minimum qualifications prescribed for the particular class may be authorized at a rate higher than the minimum upon recommendation of the department head with approval of the County.

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A full-time or part-time employee who resigns in good standing and is reappointed on a full-time or part-time or Extra Help basis in the same or a closely related class in the same or a lower salary scale within two years of resignation shall not be paid less than two steps below the step paid at the time of resignation. Approval of the County is required only if the person is rehired at a step which exceeds the step paid at the time of resignation. A full-time or part-time employee who resigns in good standing and, within one month of the date of resignation, is appointed to an extra-help job in any unrelated class may, with approval of the department head, receive the salary step rate which is closest to but does not exceed the step rate received upon resignation.

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An Extra Help employee who is appointed to an allocated part-time or full- time position in any class and without a break in service, shall be paid at a step in the appropriate salary scale which is nearest in amount to that of the step received in the classification in which the employee was Extra Help. Employment at a higher salary step not to exceed the maximum of the scale may be authorized upon recommendation of the department head and approval of the County.

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An Extra Help employee who is appointed to another Extra Help job in the same class or in another class to which the same salary scale is applicable, shall continue to receive the same salary step.

An Extra Help employee who was employed in one class and who, without a break in service, is appointed as an Extra Help employee to a different class at a lower salary scale, shall receive the salary rate step in the lower scale which is closest to, but not exceeding, the rate paid in the former scale. This provision does not apply to Extra Help employment in more than one Extra Help position.

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When an Extra Help employee returns within one year from the date of termination to a classification which the employee previously occupied, the employee shall receive the same step of the scale as the employee received upon separation. Such employee shall be considered for merit increase when the employee’s total hours in paid status before and after separation and restoration equal the number of hours required for a merit increase.

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Any full-time or part-time employee displaced, laid off, or voluntarily demoted in lieu of layoff and reappointed within two years from date of layoff in the same class from which separated or in a closely related class in the same salary scale or in a lower salary scale than the class from which separated, shall be paid at the same step in the salary scale as the employee was paid at the time of displacement, layoff, or voluntary demotion, or the step of the scale which is closest to but not exceeding the rate the employee is currently being paid as a County employee, whichever is greater. Such employee shall be considered for merit increase when the employee’s total hours in paid status before and after separation and restoration equal the number of hours required for a merit increase.

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Except as otherwise provided herein, any full or part-time employee who is promoted to a position or a class allocated to a higher salary scale than the class from which the employee was promoted shall receive the salary step rate of the appropriate scale which would constitute an increase of salary most closely equivalent to but not less than five (5) percent of the employee’s salary step rate before promotion, but not less than the minimum salary scale of the new class nor greater than the maximum salary of the new class.

If a promotion occurs during the same pay period a merit increase is due and approved, the merit increase shall be computed first and subsequent the increase due to promotion.

An employee who receives a promotion from a supervisory position to a management position or class shall receive the salary step of the appropriate scale that would constitute an increase of salary most closely equivalent to but not less than ten (10) percent of the employee’s salary step before promotion but not less than the minimum salary step of the new class or greater than the maximum salary step of the new class. If a promotion occurs on the same day a merit increase is due and approved, the merit increase shall be computed first and subsequently the increase due to promotion.

An employee who is promoted shall be considered for a merit increase when the employee’s total hours in paid status, exclusive of overtime subsequent to promotion, equals 1,040 hours. The effective date of the merit increase shall be in accordance with Article 4.18.

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Upon promotion of a full-time or part-time employee to a new class, the Human Resources Director may recommend to the County Administrator that the person being promoted shall receive a rate of pay which is higher than that to which the employee is entitled, but does not exceed the top of the scale.

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Any full-time or part-time employee who, during the employee’s probationary period, is demoted to a class which the employee formerly occupied in good standing during the same period of continuous employment in paid or unpaid status shall have the employee’s salary reduced to the salary the employee would have received if the employee had remained in the lower class throughout the employee’s period of service in the higher class. The employee’s eligibility for merit advancement shall be determined as if the employee had remained in the lower class throughout the period of service in the higher class.

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A full or part-time employee, to whom the circumstances described in Article 4.10 above do not apply, who is demoted involuntarily to a position of a class which is allocated to a lower salary scale than the class from which the employee is demoted shall have the employee’s salary step rate reduced to the salary in the scale for the new class next lower than, or not more than five (5) percent lower than the salary received before demotion, except that such employee shall not be paid more than the maximum of the scale of the class to which the employee is demoted. The employee’s eligibility for merit advancement shall not change as a result of demotion.

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A full- or part-time employee, to whom the circumstances described in Article 4.10 above do not apply, who is demoted voluntarily or who displaces as a result of layoff to a position in a class which is allocated to a lower salary scale than the class from which the employee is demoted or displaced as a result of layoff shall receive the highest salary step in the scale for the new class which does not exceed the salary received before demotion or displacement but not exceeding the maximum of the salary scale for the new class. The employee’s eligibility for merit advancement shall not change as a result of demotion or displacement.

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Any full-time or part-time employee who is demoted voluntarily and who is reappointed on a full-time or part-time basis in the same class within two years, shall be reappointed at either the same step the employee received at the time of demotion or the salary step nearest the amount of the employee’s present salary step, whichever is greater.

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A full-time or part-time employee who transfers from one allocated position to another allocated position in the same job class shall be placed at the same salary step which the employee was receiving prior to the transfer or in another class to which the same salary scale is applicable, shall continue to receive the same salary step.

A full-time or part-time employee who transfers from one allocated position in a job class to another allocated position in a closely related job class for which s/he possesses the minimum qualification shall be paid at the step in the new scale nearest in amount to what the employee received prior to transfer.

A closely related job class is defined as a job class that has sufficiently similar duties and minimum qualifications to make a change of status compatible with Merit System Standard, and has a salary scale that is within four (4) percent above or below the employee’s current job classification’s salary scale.

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An employee in a position of a class which is reallocated from one salary scale to another shall continue to receive the same salary step.

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Whenever a position is reclassified to a class which is allocated to the same salary scale, the incumbent shall retain the same salary step received prior to the reclassification if the incumbent is appointed to fill the position in accordance with Civil Service Rules.

Except as otherwise provided herein, whenever a position is reclassified to a class which is allocated to a higher salary scale, the salary of the incumbent shall be as provided by this Section upon promotion, if the incumbent is appointed to fill the position in accordance with Civil Service Rules. Whenever a position is reclassified to a class which is allocated to a lower salary scale, the salary of the incumbent shall be as provided by this Section upon voluntary demotion, if the incumbent is appointed to fill the position in accordance with Civil Service Rules. Whenever the effect of reclassification is to reduce the salary of an incumbent appointed to the position, the Board of Supervisors may, upon recommendation by the Human Resources Director, direct that the incumbent shall continue to receive the previously authorized salary until termination of employment in the position, until a percentage increase in pay may be authorized, or as otherwise agreed to by the affected employee and the department head, with the approval of the Human Resources Director and the Association, whichever first occurs. Appropriate records shall show such an incumbent as being paid at a special fixed rate (Y-rate) of the salary scale for the employee’s class.

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Merit increases within a scale shall not be automatic. They shall be based upon merit and shall be made only upon written approval by the employee’s department head or designee. Merit increases shall be made within the appropriate salary scale for the class by computing the new salary step rate which is most closely equivalent to five percent (5%) higher than the previous base hourly rate.

Each employee shall be considered for an initial merit increase when the employee’s total hours in paid status exclusive of overtime within the current class equals 1,040 hours. Each such employee shall be considered for subsequent merit increases when the employee’s total hours in paid status exclusive of overtime at each step to which advanced equals 2,080 hours.

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All merit increases will be effective on the date that the employee is eligible in accordance with Section 4.17 (Merit Advancement Within Salary Scales).

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An employee assigned by the department head to perform the full range of duties of a higher classification to fill a vacancy caused by resignation, termination, promotion or an approved leave of absence, who is expected to serve continuously in such assignment for more than 15 consecutive days of work, shall be paid according to the salary of the scale for the new class which would constitute an increase in salary at the step most closely equivalent to five (5) percent greater than the employee’s salary before promotion, but not less than minimum salary of the new class, nor greater than the maximum salary of the new class. The employee shall receive this salary as long as the employee continues to serve in such assignment and shall be entitled to receive increases for the position in accordance with the merit increase section of this Memorandum as though the employee had been appointed on the day that the employee began to receive the salary designated for the position.

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4.20.1 POST Premiums

Each eligible employee who has been awarded a valid Intermediate or Advanced Certificate issued by the California Commission on Peace Officers’ Standards and Training (POST) shall be eligible for POST premium compensation upon presentation of said certificate to the County.

1. Effective August 27, 2019, each eligible employee who has been awarded a valid POST Intermediate Certificate shall receive four and one quarter (4.25%) of base hourly rate thereafter; each eligible employee who has been awarded a valid Advanced Certificate shall receive eight and one half percent (8.50%) of base hourly rate thereafter; added to the employee’s base hourly rate for all compensation. Each eligible employee who has been awarded a valid Supervisory Certificate shall receive nine and three quarter percent (9.75%) of base hourly rate thereafter, added to the employee’s base hourly rate for all compensation purposes, including overtime.
2. Effective August 27, 2019, each eligible employee in the Communications Dispatch Manager classification who has been awarded a valid Intermediate Dispatcher or Advanced Dispatcher certificate issued by the California Commission on Peace Officers Standards and Training (POST) is eligible for POST premium compensation upon presentation of said certificate to the County. A Communications Dispatch Manager who has been awarded a valid intermediate certificate shall receive three and one half percent (3.5%) of base hourly rate thereafter; added to the employee’s base hourly rate for all compensation. A Communications Dispatch Manager who has been awarded a valid Advanced Certificate shall receive six and three quarter percent (6.75%) of base hourly rate thereafter; added to the employee’s base hourly rate for all compensation purposes, including overtime.

The premiums listed in this Section 4.20 represent the maximum amount paid at the respective level and are not subject to stacking.

4.20.2 STC Premium

Effective two full pay periods following Board approval, each eligible employee who has been awarded a valid Supervisory Certificate issued, and/or required by the California Board of State and Community Corrections Standards and Training for Corrections (STC) shall receive 2.0% of base hourly rate thereafter, added to the employee’s base hourly rate for all compensation purposes, including overtime.

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Unless mutually agreed to, all classifications within bargaining unit 44 shall utilize the following for comparable agency purposes:

Alameda County, Contra Costa County, Marin County, Napa County, Sacramento County, San Mateo County, San Luis Obispo County, Santa Clara County, Santa Cruz County, Solano County, and the City of Santa Rosa shall all be included as comparable agencies.

For purposes of understanding market data in applicable classification studies, top- step salary of comparable job classifications within the composite list of eleven agencies will be determined, then the two agencies showing the highest and lowest top-step salary will be removed from the calculation. At least four match classes must exist in order to conclude there is sufficient market data.

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