CAPE Bargaining Teams Secure 6% Pay Raises
After months of preparations and four months at the salary contract negotiations table, the CAPE bargaining teams have tentatively agreed to a new 2-year salary contract that provides for a 6% total across-the-board cost-of-living-adjustment pay increase for all LA County CAPE-represented employees.
The pay-raise agreements were secured by the CAPE teams representing the Professional Engineers, Engineering Technicians, and Appraisers bargaining units during formal bargaining with County negotiators last week.
Management representatives agreed to discuss only a few items at future Joint Labor Management Committee (JLMC) meetings as part of the new Unit contract tentative agreements. Those items for the Professional Engineers and Engineering Technicians Units include workloads/staffing, recruitment/retention, employee mentoring, tuition reimbursement, and for the Engineering Technicians only, hazard pay. The items approved for the JLMC during the new contract for the Appraisers Units are classification career paths, security of offices and surrounding areas, library funding, on-line training sponsored by SBE, and the tuition reimbursement program.
Ratification Vote to Follow: CAPE members will soon have the opportunity to vote to either accept or reject the terms of the new salary contract tentative agreement for their Unit. If ratified by CAPE members, and then subsequently by the Board of Supervisors, the first 2% pay raise would be retroactive to 10/1/2013. The new contract would expire on September 30, 2015.
County management rejects most employee proposals to improve working conditions and quality of services:
CAPE President Carlos Clayton explained that during the Unit contract negotiations County representatives rejected nearly all of the union's proposals to improve working conditions and the quality of services provided to Los Angeles County residents and businesses. "After countless exchanges with management at each of the CAPE Units' negotiating tables, it was clear that nobody on management's side was interested in our proposals to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of the County's operations," Clayton said.
For example, management representatives refused to discuss limitations on the use of contract employees at the Department of Public Works, or even admit that overuse and misuse of contract employees occurs. "When the contract workers do it wrong, we have to do it over again to make sure projects are completed to code and the County's roads, bridges, and buildings are safe," Clayton said. "It costs the County and it jeopardizes the quality of public services. Unfortunately, that must not matter to County management."
Likewise, management representatives at the County Assessor's Office refused the CAPE Appraiser Team's proposals to include workloads/staffing as a topic for discussion on the JLMC and to limit the use of 120-day retirees to special projects like training and data cleanup, and not for "value" decisions. Assessor and DPW Management also each refused numerous proposals to expand training and professional development opportunities for their employees.
"In all my years as a County professional employee, including more than ten years as a member of the CAPE Board and Negotiating Teams, I've never seen such lack of commitment by the County to solving workplace problems and improving services," said Clayton.
Despite the frustrations, Clayton said the CAPE Negotiating Teams should be commended for their months of work that delivered pay raises for the first time in more than four years and highlighted the key issues facing the County's professional employees. "Through the bargaining process, we were able to establish how serious the contracting-out problem is at DPW. None of us had any idea that some DPW divisions are staffed nearly half by contract workers," Clayton said.
Other key issues, beyond the ones added to a JLMC, that were identified during the contract negotiations process include important worker safety issues for CAPE-represented Code enforcement personnel, and the proliferation of non-compensated out-of-class assignments at the County Assessor's Office. CAPE is committed to pursuing solutions to these problems during the term of the new contract.
Efforts Continue: CAPE representatives said that work would continue on all of the issues developed during this year's negotiations. Likewise, efforts continue on the Fringe Benefits contract negotiated by the Coalition of County Unions (CCU) which is set to expire today. The Fringe Benefits contract governs a long list of important compensation items, including the County's contribution to CHOICES for the increased medical premium costs, the HORIZONS program, pensions, leave time, holidays, sick-leave buy back, and much more.
All of the details of the new salary contract tentative agreement will be included in the contract ratification materials to be mailed to CAPE members' homes soon. All CAPE members should make sure the CAPE office has their correct home address information to vote on the salary contract. You can call our office at (213) 484-0400 or update your contact information with CAPE at our website by clicking here.
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