Negotiations Between City, Miscellaneous Union Stalled

Labor negotiations between the city and its lowest paid employees union have stalled, San Bruno Patch has learned.

The negotiations have been taking place for several months since the contracts for four of the city unions expired on June 30. So far, the city has been able to reach agreements with three of the unions, including the San Bruno Firefighters Association, which was able to successfully negotiate an increase in health benefits.

However, the miscellaneous union—which is composed of all employees in non-managerial or non-public safety positions such as executive assistants and library staff members—has not been able to reach an agreement with the city, mostly because the union is unhappy with the fact that the employees haven’t received a raise in five years and are generally paid 10 percent less than their counterparts in nearby cities, according to a source close to the talks.

According to the source, the city has denied its request to conduct a salary survey to find out how San Bruno employees’ pay compares with the pay in other cities.

City Manager Connie Jackson said she could not provide specifics about the labor negotiations because the talks are confidential.

But she said the city remains in active negotiations with the miscellaneous union.

“The city remains fully engaged and interested in moving the negotiations to a mutual agreement at the earliest time possible,” Jackson said.

Jackson added that the city has agreed to conduct salary surveys in previous years. She also said that, across the board, all city employees haven’t received a cost-of-living or salary increase in several years.

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