MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
BETWEEN AND FOR THE CITY OF MERCED
AND
AFSCME DISTRICT COUNCIL 57 LOCAL 2703
(MERCED CITY EMPLOYEES ASSOCIATION)
**********
JULY 1JANUARY 1,
2021 2024
THROUGH JUNE 30,
2027DECEMBER 31,
2023
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Article I - Intent and Purpose ......................................................................................... 4 Article II - Recognition and Non-Discrimination ........................................................... 4 Article Ill - Dues Deduction ............................................................................................ 5 Article IV - Maintenance of Membership ....................................................................... 6 Article V - Authorized Representatives........................................................................... 6 Article VI - Hours and Working Conditions .................................................................. 7 Article VII - Wages ........................................................................................................ 12 Article VIII - Vacation and Sick Leave ........................................................................ 14 Article IX- Health and Welfare .................................................................................... 16 Article X - Leaves of Absence ....................................................................................... 20 Article XI - Uniforms ..................................................................................................... 20 Article XII - Grievance Procedure ................................................................................ 21 Article XIII - Management Rights ................................................................................ 23 Article XIV - Layoff ..................................................................................................... 24 Article XV - No Strike - Union Responsibilities .......................................................... 25 Article XVI - Waiver and Entire Agreement ................................................................. 26 Article XVII - Separability ............................................................................................. 26 Article XVIII - Term of Agreement .............................................................................. 26 Article XIX- Personnel Rules and Regulations ........................................................... 26 Article XX -Miscellaneous .............................................................................................. 27 Article XXI - Labor-Management Committees ............................................................. 27
Appendix
Appendix A - Wage Summaries ...................................................................................... 30 Appendix B - Side Letter to January 1, 2018 MOU ...................................................... 35 Appendix C -AB 119 Side Letter .................................................................................. 36
MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
This Memorandum of Understa nding ("MOU") is made and ente red into this, 20th day of September, 2021 by and between the City of Merced, hereinafter referred to as the "City," and AFSCME District Council 57 Local 2703 (Merce d City Employees Association), hereinafter referred to as the "Union.''
ARTICLE I
INTENT AND PURPOSE
SECTION 1.01. PURPOSES. The purposes of this Memorandum of Understanding are to assure the efficient and economical operation of the City; to secure and sustain maximum work effort of each employee cove red by this Memorandum of Un derstanding; to maintain a harmonious relationship between the employees in the bargaining un it and the City; to establish wages, hours and working conditions; to prevent strikes, slowdowns, and any other disturbances which interfere with or interrupt operations; and to set forth the entire agreement between the City, the Union, and the em ployees covered by this Memorandum of Understanding concerning rates of pay, wages, and other conditions of employment to be observed by the parties hereto.
ARTICLE II
RECOGNITION AND NON-DISCRIMINATION
SECTION 2.01. RECOGNITION. The City hereby recognizes the Union as the exclusive representative for the purpose of meeting and co nferring with respect to wages, hours of employment and other working conditions, of all full-time and regular part-time Union employees employed in the classified service by the City identified by the attached list.
SECTION 2.02. NON-DISCRIMINATION. In accordance with Federal and State law, the City prohibits discrimination an d harassment against race, relig ion, color, ag e (40 and over), sex (including gender, gender identity, gender expression), nationa l origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical co ndition, genetic characteristics or information, marital status, sexual orientation (including homosexuality, bisexuality, or heterosexuality), military and veteran status, or any other basis protected by law.
SECTION 2.03. UNION AFFILIATION. The City and the Union agree to protect the rights of all employees to exercise their free choice to join the Union or to elect the Agency Fee option.
SECTION 2.04. UNION RESPONSIBILITIES. The Union recognizes its responsibilities as respective for the purpose of meeting and conferring and agrees to represent all probationary and regular part-time and full-time employees in the unit without discrimination, interference, restraint or coercion.
ARTICLE III
DUES DEDUCTION
SECTION 3.01. AUTHORIZATION. During the term of this MOU, members of the unit may tender their Union dues to the Union directly. If a memb er voluntarily si gns a release furnished by the City authorizing the City to deduct Union dues or fees from the employee's regular biweekly paycheck, the City will make said deduction provided the employee is on regular pay status and the employee's paycheck is sufficient to cover the amount of the dues.
The employee's earnings must be sufficient to co ver the amount of dues or fees authorized after other legal and required deductions are first made. When an employee is in non-pay status for an entire pay period, no withholding will be made to cover that pay period. If an employee is in non-pay status during only a part of the pay period and his or her salary is not sufficient to cover the full withholding, no deduction shall be made. For payroll pur poses, all other legal and required deductions (e .g., health care and insurance dedu ctions, etc.) shall have priority over Union dues or fees. The City agrees to notify the Union of all new hires doing bargaining unit work within 7 days of hire.
SECTION 3.02. AUTHORIZ ATION WITHDRAW AL. Members of the unit who have given written authorization to the City to deduct Union dues or fees from their paychecks may declare their intention to term inate such payroll deduction. Termination of such payroll deduction shall be in writing, a ddressed to the City's Deputy Ci ty Manager or their designee, or her/his designee, with a copy to Union, and submitted du ring the thirty (30) day period between November 1 and Novemb er 30, and shall be effectiv e upon expiration of this Memorandum of Understanding.
SECTION 3.03. CERTIF ICATION OF DUES. Each year during the month of December, Union will certify to the Finance Officer the amount of Union monthly dues or fees. If Union changes the amount of dues, each such change must be certified to City at least four (4) weeks prior to the change becoming effective.
SECTION 3.04. LIABILITY. If during the term of this MOU any claims, charges, or lawsuits are brought against City by any party over the matter of Union dues or Union dues deduction from members' paychecks, Union agr ees to indemnify, pr otect, defend, and hold harmless City and to pay any and all costs of such claims, charges, lawsuits, damages or settlements, including reasonable attorney's fees to be determ ined by a court of competent jurisdiction. In addition, Union shall refund to City any amount s paid to it in error upon presentation of supporting evidence.
SECTION 3.05. VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS TO "AFSCME PEOPLE." The City agrees to deduct from the paycheck of al l employees covered by this Memorandum of Understanding voluntary contri butions to AFSCME PEOPLE (Public Employees Organized to Promote Legislative Equality). The Union shal l notify the City of th e amounts designated by each contributing employee that are to be deducted from his/her paycheck on a weekly basis for all weeks worked. The employee shall make the designation for the voluntary contribution.
The phrase "weeks worked " excludes any week other than a week in which the employee earned a wage.
The City shall transmit to AFSCME Local 2703 on a bi-weekly basis in one (1) check the total amount deducted along with the name of each employee on whose behalf a deduction is made, the employee's Social Securi ty number, and the amount deducted from that employee's paycheck.
ARTICLE IV
MAINTENANCE OF MEMBERSHIP
SECTION 4.01. DUES PAYROLL DEDUCTION - CURRENT MEMBERS. As a condition of continued employment, Union members on dues payr oll deduction for the payment of Union dues or fees as of 5:00 p. m. on the tenth workday following ratification by the membership of this Memorandum of Understanding must remain on payroll deduction for the life of this Memorandum of Understandin g or so long as they are employed in a classification in the representation unit.
SECTION 4.02. DUES PAYROLL DEDUCTION - NEW MEMBERS. As a condition of continued employment, Union members who establish dues or fees payroll deduction during the term of this Memorandum of Understanding must remain on payroll deduction for the life of this Memorandum of Understand ing or so long as they are employed in a classification in the representation unit.
SECTION 4.03. HOLD HARMLESS. Union agrees to indemnify, protect, defend, and hold City harmless from any judgments and costs of defending lawsuits for implementing or enforcing this provision of the Memorandum of Understanding.
SECTION 4.04. NEWLY HIRED EMPLOYEES. The City shall notify the Union President, or their designee when a bargaining unit position is filled and facilitate a meeting with a Union representative and the newly hired employee. The City and the Union have negotiated a Side Letter pursuant to AB 119(enact ed June 27, 2017) that is contained in Appendix C of this Memorandum of Understanding.
ARTICLE V
AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVES
SECTION 5.01. AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVES. For purposes of administering the terms and provisions of the various ordinances, resolutions, rules and regulations adopted with this Memorandum of Understanding, City's principal authorized agent shall be the Deputy City Manager or their designe e or his/her duly authorized ag ent, except where a particular management representative is otherwise designated; Union's pr incipal authorized agent shall be the AFSCME Council 57, Local 2703, authorized agent.
SECTION 5.02. TIME OFF FOR REPRESENTATIVES. City agrees to allow employee representatives of the Union reasonable time off during the regular work hours without loss of compensation or their benefits when formally meeting and conf erring with representatives
of City on matters within the scope of repr esentation. Such time sh all include reasonable preparation time as approved by the City Manager.
SECTION 5.03. REPRESENTATION RELEASE TIME. City and Union agree that, as long as there is no disruption of work, any one of the offi cers of Union may be allowed reasonable release time, not to exceed two (2) hours per week, away from his/her work duties, without loss of pay, to assist any unit employee or employees in investigation of facts and in presentation of a grievance.
SECTION 5.04. TIME AUTHORIZATION. Union agrees that em ployee representatives shall not leave their duty or workstation or assignment to engage in Union representation duties without specific approval of the department head or other authorized City management official.
Employee shall select represen tation from a designated pool of Union Shop Stewards, not a specific Shop Steward. If a Shop Steward is no t available, the City and the grievant will reschedule.
SECTION 5.05. BULLETIN BOARDS. Union Executive Board Memb ers will be allowed to use the City e-ma il system and the approved Bulle tin Boards for communication and dissemination of information to unit members. E-mail commu nication shall be subject to the same City rules as any other type of co rrespondence and is a public record. All communications must be in accordance with public record laws.
The designated locations for Bulletin Boards permitted for Union information are in the Civic Center first floor break room, an d the break rooms located in th e Fire Central Station, Police Central Station, Public Work s Administration building, Wast ewater Treatment Plant, and Purchasing Office. The City sh all determine actual placement of the boards in the respective break rooms. Union shall purchase said Bulletin Boards with prior desi gn approval by the City. Such enclosure sh all be a locking cabinet with limite d key access. Material posted to Bulletin Boards shall not be obscene, misleading, contain threatening or harassing statements, contain any deliberate misstateme nts, compromise the integrity of the City and its business operations in any way, or violate Federal, State, or Municipal laws, or the Personnel Rules and Regulations and Administrative Policies and Procedures.
ARTICLE VI
HOURS AND WORKING CONDITIONS
SECTION 6.01. WORKDAY, WORKWEEK, WORK PERIOD. For full-time employees of the unit, the normal workday shall be eight (8) hours; the normal workweek shall be forty (40) hour s; the normal work peri od shall be eight y (80) hours during each fourteen (14) calendar days unless an employee has re quested and received written permission from their department head and the City Manager authorizing an alternate work schedule. Approval shall be on a case-by-case basis and is not grievable.
SECTION 6.02. WORKWEEK SCHEDULE. The basic workweek schedule shall be established by the City in compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act.
SECTION 6.03. REST PERIODS. All employees shall be grante d a rest period or coffee break limited to fifteen (15) minutes during each four (4) hours ofregular work. Rest periods shall not be scheduled within one (1) hour of the beginning or th e ending of a work shift or lunch period. The department may make reasonabl e rules concerning rest period scheduling.
No wage deduction shall be made and no time of f shall be charged agai nst employees taking authorized rest periods.
SECTION 6.04. MEAL PERIODS. All employees normally shall be allowed a meal period of not less than thirty (30) minutes nor more than one ( 1) hour which shall be scheduled generally in the middle of th e work shift. The department may make reasonable rules concerning meal period scheduling. Employees are not authorized to work through a meal period to make up for prev ious absences, to accrue overtime, to gain entitlement to an earlier quitting time, or for any other reason, unless the employee's assigned or mandated duties require otherwise or department head has given prior authorization.
SECTION 6.05. WORK SCHEDULE CHANGES. Within the basic categories of workday, workweek, work period, rest period, and meal period, the department head, with the approval of the City Manager, shall have the discretion to modify work schedules to meet the needs of the City. When changes in schedules are anticipated, a minimum of fourteen (14) work days notification will be given to employees of new schedule; or when such changes are deemed to be immediately necessitated by emergency conditions, the department head shall give employees as much advance notice as is reasonably possible. For purposes of this MOU, emergency conditions are conditions involving real or potential loss of service or property or personal danger as determined by the management of the City.
SECTION 6.06. OVERTIME - DEFINITION. Overtime is defined as assigned and authorized time worked beyond the established forty (40) hours in a seven (7) day workweek.
SECTION 6.07. OVERTIME COMPUTED. For the purpose of computing the number of hours worked, time during which an employee is excused from work because of a holiday, vacation, sick leave or authorized compensatory time off (CTO) shall be considered as time worked by the employee.
SECTION 6.08. OVERTIME - BASIC RATE. Except as otherwise provided in this Memorandum of Understanding, compensation for assigned and authorized overtime work in excess of forty (40) hours in a work week shall be at a rate equivalent to one and one-half times the straight time hourly rate.
SECTION 6.09. OVERTIME FOR GR ANT REIMBURSABLE ACTIVITIES.
Employees assigned to grant reim bursable activities in the Police Department shall be paid at time and one-half for all hours worked outside of th e employees regularly scheduled shift.
These hours may be used to offset any overtime required under the FLSA.
SECTION 6.10. CALL-BACK - DEFINITION. Call-back work is defined as work required of an employee when such employee is not on his/her regular shift during the period
that begins one (I) hour after the employee has left work and ends one (I) hour before the employee is scheduled to begin the next regular shift.
SECTION 6.11. CALL-BACK PAY. Employees called back to work by the department head or his/her representative during the period specified in Section 6.10 shall receive payment for actual time worked at the appropriate hourly rate in accordance with Section
6.07. Additional callbacks shall also be compensated at the appropriate hourly rate for the actual hours worked.
SECTION 6.12. STANDBY OR ON-CALL. Except as otherwise provided in this Memorandum of Understanding, any member of the unit assigned by the department head or his/her representative to stand by or be on-call outside the regular duty schedule shall receive a standby or on-call allowance as follows:
1. Employees on standby or on-call during regularly scheduled workdays shall receive a standby or on-call allowance of two (2) hours' pay at the employee's straight time hourly rate for each weekday night of standby or on-call required.
2. Employees on standby or on-call on regul ar scheduled days off (i.e., a 24- consecutive hour pe riod commencing at 8:00 a.m. ) shall receive a standby allowance of three (3) hours pay at the employee's straight time hourly rate for each of said days of standby or on-call required.
3. Employees on standby or on-call on holidays shall receive a standby allowance of four (4) hours pay at the employee's straight time hourly rate for each day of eligible holiday required on standby or on-call.
An employee on standby or on-call who is called back to work shall be paid in accordance with the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act.
SECTION 6.13. COMPENSATO RY TIME OFF (CTO). Members of the unit who work over eight (8) hours in a workday may be give n compensatory time off (CTO) in lieu of cash payment for overtime at the discretion of the department head. The time at which compensatory time off (CTO) may be taken will be determined by the department head based on the needs of the City se rvice but after cons idering the preferen ces of the employee , and requests shall not be unreasonably denied.
SECTION 6.14. COMPENSATORY TIME OFF (CTO) RATE. When CTO is authorized in lieu of cash payment for overtime, it shall be allowed and taken at the same rate that overtime is computed in accordance with section 6.07 of this MOU.
SECTION 6.15. COMPENSATORY TIME OFF (CTO) - MAXIMUM ACCRUAL.
The maximum accrual of CTO hours is eighty (8 0) hours. Above the maximum accrual, all overtime worked shall be paid in cash.
SECTION 6.16. COMPENSATORY TIME OFF (CTO) - PAYMENT. Prior to resignation, termination or retirement, a member of this unit shall be permitted to utilize accumulated CTO, or shall be pa id the cash equivalent of the accumulated CTO. Employees in this unit may, once per quarter, elect to cas h out up to forty (40) hours of CTO. Payment shall be made by separate check, unless an d until adverse changes in state and federal regulations.
SECTION 6.17. GENERAL AUTHORIZATIONS. The amount of overtime work, call- back work, standby, or on-call, and the method of reimbursement for such work, such as cash, time off, or a combinat ion thereof, shall be determined through gene ral policy of the City Manager except as specifically abridged in this Memorandum of Understanding.
No employee shall perform over time work, call-back work, standby, or on-call unless such work is authorized and direct ed by the department head or his/her representative, and no employee shall be paid for such overtime, call-back, standby, or on-call unless he/she shall be approved by the department head on the payrol l sheet submitted at the end of the pay period in which the work was performed.
SECTION 6.18. HOLIDAYS. During the term of this MOU, the following holidays are recognized as City holidays for pay purposes for all employees in the unit:
New Year's Day The 1st day of January
Martin Luther King Jr. Day The 3rd Monday of January
Washington's Birthday The 3rd Monday of February
Cesar Chavez Day The 31st day of March
Memorial Day The last Monday in May
Juneteenth The 19th day of June
Independence Day The 4th day of July
Labor Day The first Monday in September
Veterans Day The 11th day of November
Thanksgiving Day The 4th Thursday in November
Day After Thanksgiving The day after the 4th Thursday in November
Christmas Day The 25th day of December
Either Christmas Eve or New Year's Eve - Employee is guaranteed to be allowed to take within the calendar year.
The City Manager shall have the authority to implement newly created federal and state holidays without the duty to meet and confer with the Union.
One Floating Holiday - To be taken when requested by the Employee and with the approval of the department head. Available to be taken up to December 31 of each calendar year. Floating Holiday will be paid at time of separatio n if not previously taken for that calendar year. Unit member hired after the second Monday in October would not be eligible for Floating Holiday in that calendar year.
*Payment authorized for working only when deemed to be an emergency.
*If staffing and schedulin g makes it such that employees can get neither day off, an alternate day can be selected with approval of the City Manager if request is made no later than December 1.
When any day recognized as a holiday by the City falls on a Sunday, the following Monday shall be considered the holiday. When any day r ecognized as a holiday by the City falls on a Saturday, the preceding Friday shall be considered the holiday.
SECTION 6.19. MODIFICATION OF HOLIDAY SCHEDULE. It is understood that employees do not report to work on recognized City holidays unless otherwise directed by the department head. Subject to regulation and control of the City Manager, the department head may require any employee to work on any or all of said holidays.
SECTION 6.20. HOLIDAY PAY - DAY WORKED. Employees of the unit eligible for holiday benefits who are required by management directive to work on a day designated as a holiday shall receive pay equal to and in lieu of time off at the straight time for the holiday and be paid in accordance with Section 6.07 of this MOU:
Employees subjected to "scheduled staffing", where th e holiday falls during the normal regularly scheduled 40 hour work week shall be paid at the straight tim e rate for each hour worked during the first eight (8) hours of work.
The compensation provided for in this subsection shall be inclusive of any overtime compensation or other benefits to which such employees may be entitled under the provisions of any ordinance or resolution of the City or other applicable law, and not in addition thereto.
SECTION 6.21. HOLIDAY PAY - DAY OFF. When a day designated as a holiday falls on a normally assigned day off of an employee of the unit who is eligible for holiday benefits, said employee shall receive additional pay equal to and in lieu of time off at straight time hourly rate for said holiday.
SECTION 6.22. HOLIDAY PAY - LEAVE OF ABSENCE. Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 6.21, an employee in the unit shall not receive holiday pay if he/she is on an approved leave of absence.
SECTION 6.23. ABSENCES BEFORE AND AFTER HOLIDAYS. Any employee who is absent from work on the day before and/or the day after a ho liday, as set forth in Section
6.18 of this Article, may forfeit the holiday pa y unless the absence is taken as approved leave with prior notice. An absence taken as sick leave will be approved only by verification by the supervisor who may requir e a doctor's certificate verifyi ng inability of the employee to work. The employee will bear the cost of securing a doctor's verification, if required.
SECTION 6.24. PROBATIONARY PERIOD FOR PROMOTIONS. Promotional appointments shall be subject to a six-month probationary period for members of this bargaining unit. An employee who is rejected during their promotiona l probationary period shall be reinstated to the position from which they were promoted. If an employee is dismissed from their employment with the City in addition to being re jected during their promotional probationary period, they shall have the right to a hearing before the Personnel Board.
ARTICLE VII
WAGES
SECTION 7.01. WAGES. Wages are listed in Appendix A, which is hereby incorporated herein and made a part of this Memorandum of Understanding. Effective the first pay period following ratification a nd City Council approval ,All classifications shall receive a 3% wage increase. Eeffective the first full pay period following July 1June 24, 2024 ,a 2025 , 4% increase effective June 23, 2025 and a . Effective the first full pay period following July 1, 2026, 4% wage increase effective June 22, 2026 .of the fiscal year in 2018, pay period 14, wage increase of 2.50 %. Effective the first pay period of the fiscal year in 2019 wage increase of 2.50%.
All bargaining unit members shall receive a one-time $500.00 lump sum payment if employed on the date of the payment. E ligible bargaining unit members shall receive the payment in the first full pay period following ra tification of a successor MOU that is effective July 1, 2021, through December 31, 2023. Barg aining unit members will have the option of deferring all or a portion of the payment to the City's Deferred Compensation 457 Plan.
Wages shall be increased by 4% (3% base wage and 1% ARPA-funded) effective the first full pay period of July 2021. Incumbents in the classificatio ns of Accountant I, Administrative Analyst, Deputy City Clerk, Development Se rvices Technician I, Development Services Technician II, Housing Program Specialist I, Housing Program Specialist II, Records Clerk I, and Records Clerk II shall receive an additiona l equity increase of 2% , for a total of 6%, effective the first full pay period of July 2021.
Wages shall be increased by 5% (3% base wage, 1% equity wage, and 1% ARPA-funded) effective the first full pay peri od of July 2022. Al so, incumbents in th e classifications of Accountant I, Administrative Analyst, Deputy Ci ty Clerk, Development Services Technician I, Development Services Technician II, Ho using Program Specialist I, Housing Program Specialist II, Records Clerk I, and Records Clerk II shall receive an additional equity increase of2%, for a total of 7%, effective the first full pay period of July 2022.
Wages shall be increased by 4% (3% base wage and 1% ARPA-funded) effective the first full pay period of July 2023.
SECTION 7.02. CALIFORNIA PUBLIC EMPLOY EES' RETIREMENT SYSTEM.
The City shall maintain the 2.5% at age 55 California P ublic Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) Retirement Program for current Union members. The City will implement a two- tiered retirement system, and al l new Union members hired on or after December 10, 2012 will be covered by the 2% at age 60 benefit fo rmula, if they are eligible for reciprocity as
defined by CalPERS. "New Members", as define d by CalPERS, shall be covered by the 2% at age 62 benefit formula.
Union members shall pay the entire employee contribution required by PERS. The employees' payment of the 1.95% employer contribution shall be eliminated effective December 22, 2014.
Employee cost-sharing will be ma de by payroll deduction and will be considered pre-tax employee contributions.
SECTION 7.03. PAY RANGE SALARY STEPS - FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES AND REGULAR PART-TIME EMPLOYEES. For full-time employees and regular part-time employees, the pay plan provides for pay ranges an d a salary step schedule of five (5) steps.
The salary steps in the pay range are designated 1, 2 , 3, 4 and 5.
If retroactive pay is due for any reason, payment shall be made by separate check, unless and until adverse changes in state and federal regulations.
SECTION 7.04. DEFERRED COMPENSATION. The City shall make available a Deferred Compensation Plan for those employees in this unit who wish to participate in said plan.
SECTION 7.05. SHIFT DIFFERENTIAL. Members of the unit assi gned to shift or unit regularly scheduled to work four (4) hours or more between 5:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. shall receive three percent (3%) shift differential in addition to his/her base wage.
SECTION 7.06. BILINGUAL PAY. In accordance with admi nistrative policies and procedures, employees in the unit required to speak or write in Spanis h, or other eligible languages in addition to English, and including sign language, as part of the regular duties of his/her position shall be comp ensated at the following bi-week ly rates in addition to the employee's rate of pay:
Verbal Skills Only $23.08
Written Skills Only $34.62
Verbal and Written Skills $46.15
The City Manager shall designate which languages shall be eligible for bilingual pay based on community needs and will determine the number of employees who will be eligible for bilingual assignments.
SECTION 7.07 EDUCATION PAY.
A. Non-probationary unit members who have completed or complete an associate degree from an accredited school and pr ovide a copy of their diploma or final transcript to Human Resources, shall be paid the bi-weekly equivalent of $100 per month.
B. Non-probationary unit member s who have completed a bachelor's degree from an accredited school and provide a copy of their diploma or final transcri pt to Human Resources, shall be paid the bi-weekly equivalent of $200 per month.
C. The benefits in Sections 7.07 A. and B. are not stackable.
D. Section 7.07 shall be effectiv e the first day of the first fu ll pay period following City Council approval of this MOU and shall not be retroactive.
SECTION 7.08. LONGEVITY PAY
City employees who have worked for the City (consecutive years of service), shall receive longevity pay as follows:
10 years of consecutive service, 1% wage increase
15 years of consecutive service, 1% wage increase (total of 2%) 20 years of consecutive service, 1% wage increase (total of 3%) 25 years of consecutive service, 1% wage increase (total of 4%)
SECTION 7.09. EQUITY ADJUSTMENTS
In the Second year of the agreement, the parties agree to meet to discuss potential equity concerns for bargaining unit base wages.
ARTICLE VIII
VACATION AND SICK LEAVE
SECTION 8.01. VACATION ACCRUAL. After the effective date of this agreement, all eligible employees shall earn vacation benefits in accordance with their length of continuous service as follows:
During the first 5 years of continuous service, full-time regular employees earn vacation benefits at the rate of 3.696 hours each biweekly pay period of continuous service. Employees who earn vacation at this rate may accumu late vacation to a maximum of 192.00 hours.
After the completion of 5 years of continuous service, full-time regular employees earn vacation benefits at the rate of 4.616 h ours each biweekly pay period of continuous service. Employees who earn vacation at this rate may accumu late vacation to a maximum of 240.00 hours.
After the completion of 9 years of continuous service, full-time regular employees earn vacation benefits at the rate of 6.160 h ours each biweekly pay period of continuous service. Employees who earn vacation at this rate may accumu late vacation to a maximum of 320.00 hours.
After the completion of 15 y ears of continuous service, full-time regular employees earn vacation benefits at the rate of 6.928 hours each biweekly pay period of continuous
service. Employees who earn vacation at this rate may accumu late vacation to a maximum of 360 hours. The proposal shall not be retroactive and is effective on a go forward basis following ratification by memb ership and approval of MOU by the City Council, but no sooner than pay period 14 in 2018.
After the completion of 20 years of con tinuous service, full-time regular employees earn vacation benefits at the rate of 7.696 hours each biweekly pay period of continuous service. Employees who earn vacation at this rate may accumu late vacation to a maximum of 400.00 hours.
After completion of twenty-five (25) years of continuous servi ce, full-time regular employees earn vacation benefits at the rate of 9.232 hours each biweekly pay period
of continuous servi ce. Employees who earn vacation at this rate may accumulate vacation to a maximum of 480.00 hours.
Part-time regular employees earn vacation benefits at a prorata rate.
SECTION 8.02. VACATION PAYMENT. All employees of the unit will have the option to cash out up to a maximum of twenty (20) hours of accrued vacation time. Employees who elect to cash out vacation shall have a minimum balance of 100 accrued vacation hours prior to the cash out pay period and shall have completed their initial probationary period with the City of Merced. Vacation payment will take place once per year in the first pay period in December.
The proposal shall not be retroactive and is effective on a go forward basis following ratification by membership and approval of MOU by the City Council, but no sooner than first full pay period after City Council approval
SECTION 8.03. VACATION USE.
A. VACATION USE. Vacation used by an employee shall be charged against the vacation accrued on an hour-for-hour basis. Earned leave shall not be unreasonably denied.
B. MAXIMUM VACATION ACCRUAL. When the maximum number of vacation hours is accumulated by an empl oyee, vacation hour s shall cease to accrue to that employee and hours th at otherwise would accrue over the maximum are lost to the employee and will not be reimbursed.
It shall be the responsibility of the employee to monitor his/her vacation accrual and to request vacation use so that the employee's maximum accrual is not exceeded.
SECTION 8.04. SICK LEAVE ACCRUAL. All eligible employees earn sick leave benefits service as follows:
Full-time regular employees earn sick leave benefits from the first date of employment at the rate of 3.696 hours each biweekly pay period of continuous service. Employees may accumulate sick leave benefits to a maximum of 1056.00 accrued sick leave hours.
Part-time employees earn sick leave benefits at a pro rata rate.
SECTION 8.05. SICK LEAVE DURING FIRST SIX MONTHS OF INITIAL PROBATION. Any unit employee initially appointed to a po sition in the classified service serves an initial probationary period of twelve (12) months. Probatio nary employees may use sick leave accrued to them under the same rules and regulations as regular employees.
SECTION 8.06. SICK LEAVE USE. Sick leave used by an employee shall be charged against the sick leave accrued on an hour-for-hour basis.
SECTION 8.07. SICK LEAVE PAYMENTS. In January of each year, employees who have unused sick leave in excess of 960 hours as of the last pay period in the preceding December will be paid at their straight time hourly rate for fifty pe rcent (50%) of said hours in excess of 960, but the remaining fifty percent (50%) of hours in excess of 960 will be forfeited. Payment shall be made by separate ch eck, unless and until adverse changes in state and federal regulation.
SECTION 8.08. SICK LEAVE FOR IMMEDIATE FAMILY CARE. An employee with accumulated sick leave may use sick leave to attend to an illness of a child, domestic partner's child who is ill, pare nt, spouse, sibling, grandpare nt, grandchildren or domestic partner of the employee, consistent with state and federal law. Leave for this purpose may not be taken until it has actually accrued.
SECTION 8.09. FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT. In accordance with administrative policies and procedures, employees in the unit will be entitled to family and medical leave required by federal and state law.
SECTION 8.10. CATASTR OPHIC LEAVE BANK. In accordance with administrative policies and procedures, employees in the unit will be entitled to assist other City employees who face extended leaves without pay due to a catastrophic non-industrial occurrence in their lives. For the purpose of this plan, a catastr ophic occurrence is defined as a serious non- industrial injury or a prolonged illness to themselves, and the affected employee has exhausted all accrued leaves. Both the donor and the re cipient must be regular full-time employees, having passed initial probation. Catastrophic leave determinations are non- grievable.
SECTION 8.11. SICK LEAVE UPON SEPARATION FROM CITY SERVICE. To the extent permitted by law, an employee of the unit who resigns or is dismissed forfeits all further eligibility to any accrued but unused sick leave. An employee of the unit who retires from the City after ten (10) or more years of continuous service will be paid at the straight time hourly rate for 50 percent of the hours of accrued but unused sick leave. The remaining 50 percent of the hours of accrued but unused sick leave will be forfeited.
ARTICLE IX
HEALTH AND WELFARE
SECTION 9.01. BENEFITS PROVIDED AND REQUIRED. City shall provide a "cafeteria" plan. Each employee shall be required to pa rticipate in the following five plans to a level that provides for the employee:
• Hospital/medical care plan,
• Dental care plan,
• Vision care plan,
• Disability insurance plan (all unit members shall be required to enroll in the 30-day retention period disability plan),
• Life insurance plan.
Employees may request a waiver for medical, dental, or vision coverage from the Support Services Department. Such waiver may be granted only if the employee shows proof of other coverage through the employee's spouse. Should an employee who has obtained a waiver to this provision lose such alternative coverage, the employee shall provide proof to the Support Services Department within five (5) business days and enroll in a City-provided insurance program. If waiver of coverage is granted the allowances as outlined in Section
9.03 will be adjusted accordingly.
Participation for the em ployee's dependents, and participation in other coverages offered, is optional.
SECTION 9.02. PLAN SELECTION AND EMPLOYEE BENEFIT COMMITTEE.
The City shall provide a selection of employee health and welfare benefit coverages for eligible employees and retirees, incl uding but not limited to at least two options each for hospital/medical care plan, dental care plan, vision care plan, life insurance plan, and disability insurance plan. The plans shall be selected solely by the C ity following review of proposals by the Employee Benefits Committee. For the purpose of this sectio n, it is understood that the role of the Employee Benefits Committee is advisory to the City Council. The Committee shall be comprised of representatives of each of the City's bargaining units and management.
SECTION 9.03. SCHEDULE OF ALLO WANCES PER PAY PERIOD. The City shall contribute an amount per bi-week ly pay period (based on twenty -six pay periods annually) as the Cafeteria Allowance Per Pay Period.
Effective December 28, 2020 (PP01) the per pay period allowances are as follows:
Medical
Employee only $247.52
Employee plus one $506.88
Employee plus two or more $745.25
Dental, Vision, Disability, and Life
Employee only $30.67
Employee plus one $44.02
Employee plus two or more $63.67
Effective December 27, 2021 (PPI) the pay period allowances are as follows:
Medical
Employee only $244.47
Employee plus one $500.79
Employee plus two or more $736.11
Dental, Vision, Disability, and Life
Employee only $31.80
Employee plus one $45.71
Employee plus two or more $66.20
Future health and welfare plan cost increases an d decreases will be shar ed by both the City and the employee. Any in crease in the sum of core premiums necessary to purchase the above listed coverages will be shared (55/45) between the City and the employee with the City paying 55% of the increase and the employee paying 45% of the increase. Th e City's portion shall reflect an increase in the Cafeteria Per Pay Period.
Any decrease in the sum of co re premiums necessary to purch ase the above listed coverages will be shared (55/45) between the City and the employee with 55% of the decrease credited to the City's contribution and 45% of the d ecrease credited to the employee's contribution.
The City's portion shall reflect a decrease in the Cafeteria Per Pay Period. "Core" is defined as the basic offerings in the Cafeteria Plan listed in 9.01.
The employee shall be responsi ble for the balance of the pr emiums, if any, beyond the Cafeteria Allowance Per Pay Period. This applies for all insurance coverages selected, whether those coverages are part of the five basic o fferings in the cafeteria, or other selections.
Employee contributions may be ma de on a pre tax basis if the employee elects to participate in a Section 125 plan. In order to avoid issues of adverse selection and recognizing the mutual interest of the City and the Union in avoiding escalation of insurance premium expenses, no employee shall receive cash back except that a unit member who is married and whose spouse is also a current City of Merced employee, accepted for waiver of medical coverage, shall receive cash back equal to twenty-five percent (25%) of the core medical premium for a single individual.
SECTION 9.04. MEDICAL/HEALTH, DE NTAL AND VISION CARE COVERAGE AFTER RETIREMENT.
A. In accordance with Administ rative Policy and Procedure No. P-17, the City shall provide a hospital/medical care pl an for eligible retirees and their spouse or registered domestic partner. The spouse or registered domestic partner of an eligible retiree may remain on the plan until the retiree is deceased . The spouse or registered domestic partner and retiree shall be responsible for payment of the premium for coverage of spouse or registered domestic partner. The hospital/medical care plan shall be selected solely by the City and shall provide essen tially the same benefits to retirees as are provided to full-time employees. An employee shall be considered a retiree of the City if the employee retires in the California Public Empl oyees' Retirement System and his/her last active place of full-time employment within the system was
with the City. All retirees ar e eligible except as provid ed below and shall receive hospital/medical care coverage under the following conditions:
1. The retiree is age 50 or over with at least ten (10) years of service with the City; or
2. Retiree is retired because of a service-connected disability; or
3. Retiree is retired because of a non-service-co nnected disability with at least ten (10) years of service.
B. City Contribution.
1. For those retirees in retirement status on or before July 20, 2003, the City agrees to contribute the amount n ecessary to provide a comparab le hospital/medical plan for each eligible retiree.
2. For those active unit members who retire after July 20, 2003, the City agrees to contribute the monthly premium for each eligible retiree capped at the following amounts: $390.55 monthly for Retirees over 65, and $546.51 monthly for Retirees under 65. The Re tiree shall pay any amount over the capped premium.
3. Unit members hired on or after January 1, 2004 may enroll in the City's retiree health/medical plan(s) when they retire. The premiums shall be the responsibility of the retired employee.
C. City's Retiree Health/Medical Plan(s) S econdary to other Coverage at Age 65. If an employee retires on or after January 1, 1999, and enrolls in th e City's retiree health/medical plan(s)as provided in this S ection, said retired employee and his/her spouse and/or other dependents shall continue to be covered under the City's medical plan until both persons reach age 65. The City shall pay the premium for the retired employee, and the dependent(s) premium shall be the responsibility of the retired employee. At the age of 65, the City's medical plan shall be secondary to Medicare medical coverage or any other benefit coverage available to the retired employee and eligible spouse.
D. Dental and Vision Coverage for Employ ees who Retire on or after August 2, 1998. An eligible employee who retires after Au gust 1, 1998, and his/her spouse and/or dependents, shall be eligible to continue coverage under the City's dental and vision plans. The premiums shall be the responsibility of the retired employee. If a retired employee discontinues coverage, the City may allow the retiree to reenroll during open enrollment. The City's dental and vision plans will no longer be available to a retired employee's eligible spouse or registered domestic partner and/or dependents upon the death of the retired employee.
ARTICLEX
LEAVES OF ABSENCE
SECTION 10.01. BEREAVEMENT LEAVE. In the event of a d eath in the immediate family, an employee, upon request, shall be granted up to twenty-four (24) hours bereavement leave with pay without charge to accumulated sick leave or vacation. An additional twenty- four (24) hours bereavement leave shall be granted upon request of the employee, if sufficient accrued hours are available, where extensive travel is required to attend the funeral, or where other extenuating circumstances require the attendance of the employee for additional time.
Such additional bereavement l eave shall be charged against the employee's accumulated leave credits including sick, vacation, and CTO.
SECTION 10.02. DEFINITION OF IMMEDIATE FAMILY. For the purposes of Section 10.01, the immediate fam ily shall be restricted to fa ther, mother, spouse, domestic partner, child, brother, sister, mother-in-la w, father-in-law, grandparents, grandchildren related by blood, marriage, or adoption, or a step-child of the employee's current spouse.
SECTION 10.03. OTHER FUNERAL LEAVE. In the event of the d eath of a person not immediately related to an employee, as defi ned above, the employee's department head may grant up to eight (8) hours funeral leave upon request of the employee which shall be charged against the employee's accumulated sick, CTO, or vacation leave credits.
SECTION 10.04. ABSENCE WITHOUT OFFICIAL LEAVE (AWOL). Failure to report for duty or failure to report for duty after a leave of absence request has been disapproved, revoked or cancelled, or at the expiration of a l eave, shall be considered an absence without official leave.
SECTION 10.05. VOLUNTARY RESIGNATION. Any employee in this unit absent without official leave for two (2 ) or more consecutive days or absent an aggregate of sixteen (16) hours in any calendar month without a satisf actory explanation shall be deemed to have voluntarily resigned from the City of Merced.
ARTICLE XI
UNIFORMS
SECTION 11.01. UNIFORMS. The City agrees to provide uniforms for employees who are required as a condition of em ployment to wear uniforms. The City Manager will determine the classes of positions for which uniforms will be provided and the types of uniforms that will be furnished. The City reserves the right to eliminate unifor ms in any of the classes of positions.
Those employees who are required to wear unif orms as a condition of employment shall be provided a minimum of five (5) complete uniforms. All uniforms shall be of such a nature that they do not require dry cleaning and will not cause employees to incur an additional out of pocket expense to maintain.
SECTION 11.02. PROTECTIVE CLOTHING. When the City requir es an employee to wear personal protective clothing or accessories, the City shal l either furnish the item or reimburse the employee for the mandatory purchase.
ARTICLE XII
GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE
SECTION 12.01. DEFINITIONS. The following words used in this Article are defined as follows:
Grievance: A claimed violation, misapplication or misinterpretation of a specific provision of this Memorandum whic h adversely affects the grievant.
Grievant: An employee who is filing a grievance. Any alleged violation, misapplication or misinterpretation that aff ects more than one em ployee in a similar manner may be consolidated and thereafte r represented by a single grievance.
Day: A day in which the City's main administrative office is open for business.
SECTION 12.02. TIME LIMIT FOR FILING GRIEVANCE. A grievance shall be barred and not considered if base d upon a condition or event wh ich occurred or existed more than fifteen (15) workdays immediately prior to the date on which the grievance is first presented in writing to the immediate supervisor pursuant to Step 2.
SECTION 12.03. PROCEDURE. The City and the Union agree to the following exclusive procedure of presenting and adjusting grievances that must be proces sed in accordance with the following steps, time limits and conditions.
SECTION 12.04. STEP ONE. The aggrieved employee shall discuss the matter with the employee's immediate supervisor.
SECTION 12.05. STEP TWO. If the answer from the immediate supervisor is not satisfactory within ten ( I 0) workdays following this discussion, the grievance within such time shall be reduced to writing on the form provided by the Personnel Department and submitted to the grievant's immediate supervisor. Within ten (10) workdays after receipt of the written grievance, the immediate supervisor shall answer the grievance in writing.
SECTION 12.06. STEP THREE. The answer from the immediate supervisor shall be final unless the grievance is appealed in writing to the involved department head within ten (10) workdays from the date of the supervisor's written answer in Step One. Within ten (10) workdays after receipt of the written appeal, the department head shall investigate and provide a written answer to the grievant.
SECTION 12.07. STEP FOUR. The answer from the department head shall be final unless the grievance is appealed in writing to the De puty City Manager or th eir designee or his/her designee within ten (10) workdays from the date of the department head's written answer in
Step Three. The Deputy City Manager or their designee or designee shall discuss the grievance with the grievant or the Union representative at a tim e mutually agreeable to both parties.
Within ten (10) workdays after the close of discussion, the Deputy City Manager or their designee or designee shall give his/her written answer.
A. OPTIONAL STEP: MEDIATION. Following the answer from the Director of Support Services, either part y may make a request for mediation. The request must be made in writing within seven (7) work days of the Step Four response from the Deputy City Manager or their designee.
Neither party will be bound by any statement or recommendation of the mediator or by either statement or proposal made by the pa rties during the mediation process. Either party may terminate the mediation proces s immediately by written notice at any time .
Upon termination of the mediation, either party pursuing the matter further may submit it in writing to the Chairperson of the Personnel Board within five (5) workdays of the date of the notice of termination of the mediation, in order to pursue the process to Step Five.
The cost of mediation, if any, shall be shared equally by the parties.
SECTION 12.08. STEP FIVE. The answer from the Deputy City Manager or their designee or designee shall be final unless the grievance is appealed in writing to the Personnel Board Chairperson within five (5) workdays after receipt of the Deputy C ity Manager or their designee' or designee's written answer in Step Four. The Personnel Boar d shall hold a hearing of the grievance within thirty (30) workdays after receipt of the written appeal. The Personnel Board, after conducting such hearing, shall forward its recommendation to the City Manager for final determination. The Ci ty Manager, after considera tion of the Personnel Board's recommendation, shall provide his/her written final determinat ion to the aggrieved employee within ten (10) workdays.
SECTION 12.09. EFFECT OF TIME LIMITS. The parties agree to follow each of the foregoing steps in the processing of a grievance and if, in any step, the City's representative fails to give hi s/her written answer within the time limit therein set forth, the grievance shall automatically be transferred to the next step at the expiration of such time limit. Any grievance not moved by the grievant or the Union to the next step within the time limits provided following the City's answer will be considered settled on the basis of the City's last answer.
SECTION 12.10. EXTENSION OF TIME LIMITS. Extensions of days to answer or move a grievance may be extended by mutual written agreement.
SECTION 12.11. REPRESENTATION. Nothing contained in th is Article shall be interpreted to preclude an employee from requesting a representative to be present at each step in the grievance procedure.
SECTION 12.12. JUST CAUSE. The City will not discipline , suspend, or terminate an employee, with the exception of temporary and probationary employees, except for just cause.
Disciplinary action taken against any employee must comply with the conditions set forth in Article XX of the City of Merced Personnel Rules and Regulations.
ARTICLE XIII
MANAGEMENT RIGHTS
SECTION 13.01. MANAGEMENT RIGHTS. All City rights and fu nctions, except those that are expressly abridged by this Memorandum of Understanding, shall remain vested with the City.
Except to the extent that the rights, powers an d authority of the City are specifically limited by the provisions of this Memorandum of Unders tanding, the City retains all rights, powers and authority granted to it or which it has pursuant to any law or the City Charter and the City shall not be required to meet and confer with respect to the exercise of such rights, powers and authority reserved herein, including but not limited to:
a. Determine the level of, and manner in which, the City's activities and services are conducted, managed, and administered.
b. Schedule work.
c. Direct employees, including the right to hire, promote, discipline, or discharge employees as set forth in the Personnel Rules.
d. Transfer employees.
e. Establish and enforce employee performance standards. f. Determine the safety, health, and property protection measures for the City. g. Reorganizations and reallocation of work of the City.
This MOU is not intended to, nor may it be construed to, modify the provisions of the Charter relating to Civil Service or pe rsonnel administration. The rights, powers, and authorities are specifically outlined in the Merced City Charte r in Article V, City Manager and Article VI, Officers and Employees and shall continue in effect unless expressly modified or restricted by a specific provision hereof. The City shall continue to exercise authority over classification of jobs and the procedures and standards of selection for employment and promotion.
SECTION 13.02. TRAINING PROGRAMS. The Union recognizes the City's authority to provide training to participants in a federal, state, or locally sponsored job training program so long as the participan ts will not displace an y current unit employee or any laid- off unit employee and the training will not cause a reduction in non-overtime work.
ARTICLE XIV
LAYOFF
SECTION 14.01. LAYOFF.
1. In lieu of being laid off an employee may elect demotion ("bumping") to:
A. Any class in the same class series with a lower maximum salary;
B. A class in the same line of work (as de termined by the City ) as the class of layoff, but of lesser respon sibility, and with substan tially the same or a lower maximum salary.
2. In order to bump to a new classification, the employee must have more seniority than the employee that will be displaced.
3. The employee bumping to a new classification within the series must have held a classification within that seri es at some time in his/her career in the City of Merced; and in the case of an employee not in the unit, that employee must also have held a unit classification identified within the class series and can onl y bump to the classification previously held.
4. Seniority is determined by th e total continuous service in the City. The following provisions apply in computing total continuous service:
A. Time spent on military leave shall count as service in the event the leave was taken subsequent to employment;
B. Time worked in regular and/or probationary status shall count as service;
C. Time worked in an extra help, seasonal, provisional, temporar y, grant or other limited term status, shall not count as service.
5. To be considered for demotion in lieu of layoff, an employee must notify the Personnel Manager within five (5) working days ofreceipt of the notice oflayoff.
6. In cases where there are two or more employees in a clas s from which the layoff is to be made, such employees shall be laid off in inverse order of seniority.
7. Employees bumping to a lower or similar class series shall be placed at the salary step representing the least loss of pay, without exceeding the employee's current rate of pay.
8. The names of persons laid off or demoted in accordance with this policy shall be entered upon a re-employment list in the order of lay off. Such list shall be used by
the City Manager and each department head when a vacancy arises in the same or lower class series.
9. Names of persons laid off shall be carried on a re-employment lis t for two (2) years, except that persons appointed to regular positions of the sa me or higher level shall be dropped from the list upon such appointmen t. Persons re-employed in a lower class, or on a temporary basis, shal l be continued on the list fo r the higher position for the two (2) years.
10. Refusal of a person to accept the first offer of re-employment with the same classification or a classification at the same or higher range shall cause the name of the person to be dropped from the re-employment list. Failure of a person to respond within seven (7) workdays to the offer of re-employment shall be considered a refusal.
11. Seniority at the time of layoff shall be recognized upon re-employment for the purposes of determining vacation accruals. Sick leave accrual amount at th e time of layoff, if any, shall be reinstated upon re-employment.
12. If the provisions of this policy are in conflict with the provisions of a Memorandum of Understanding, the MOU shall be controlling without further action.
13. An employee may not demote to a frozen position or a position that is being eliminated as part of the layoff, and an employee electing demotion must meet the minimum qualifications for the new classification.
ARTICLE XV
NO STRIKE - UNION RESPONSIBILITIES
SECTION 15.01. NO STRIKE. The Union, its officers, ag ents, members and employees covered by this Memorandum of Understanding, agree that so long as this memorandum is in effect, there shall be no strikes, sickouts, partial or complete, sit-downs, slowdowns, stoppages or cessation of work, including actions of a sympathy nature, boycotts or any unlawful acts of any kind that interfere with the City's operations. Any violation of this provision may be made subject to disciplinary action, including discharge. Only the f act as to whet her or not an employee engaged in a violation of this article may be subject to the gr ievance provisions of this memorandum.
SECTION 15.02. OBLIGATIONS OF UNION. In the event of any failure of Section
15.01 to operate effectively in any work stoppage, the Union, its officers, stewards and agents, agree that they will immediately take and continue to take all reasonable steps to restore full operations, including notifying City employees th at they are in violation of the Memorandum of Understanding and subject to discipline
ARTICLE XVI
WAIVER AND ENTIRE AGREEMENT
SECTION 16.01. SCOPE OF AGREEMENT. Except as otherwise sp ecifically provided herein, this Memorandum of Understanding fully and co mpletely incorporates the understanding of the parties he reto and constitutes the sole and entire memorandum between the parties regarding the provisions contained in this MOU; provided that nothing herein shall prohibit the parties from changing the terms of this memorandum by mutual agreement.
ARTICLE XVII
SEPARABILITY
SECTION 17.01. SEPARABILITY OF PROVISIONS. Every clause of this Memorandum of Understa nding shall be deemed separable from every other clause of this Memorandum of Understanding an d in the event that any clause or clauses shall be finally determined to be in violation of any law by judgment or decree of any court of competent jurisdiction, then any su ch clause or clauses only, to the extent only that any may be in violation, shall be deemed une nforceable without impairing the validity and enforceability of the rest of this memorandum.
ARTICLE XVIII
TERM OF AGREEMENT
SECTION 18.01. TERM OF AGREEMENT. Unless otherwise provided in this Memorandum of Understanding, upon the approval of the City Council of the City of Merced, the specific provisions of this Memorandum of Understanding sh all become effective July 1, 2021, and shall remain in full force and effect through December 31, 2023.
ARTICLE XIX
PERSONNEL RULES AND REGULATIONS
SECTION 19.01. PERSONNEL RULES AND REGULATIONS. The City and the Union have met and conferred on the Personnel Rules and Regulations adopted by the City Council on June 19, 1989 (Resolution No. 1989-57) exceptions to those Rules and Regulations are contained in this Memorandum of Understanding.
SECTION 19.02. HEALTH MAINTENANCE MEDICAL, PHYSICAL AND/OR PSYCHOLOGICAL EXAMINATIONS. When, in the opinion of the City Manager and the appropriate department head, it would be in the best interest of the City to evaluate the medical or psychological condition of an employee, the City Manager may direct the Personnel Manager to schedule such employee for an examin ation, at City expens e, with a physician, psychiatrist, or psychologist selected by the City.
In unusual circumstances wher e an employee may pr esent a hazard to himself/herself, co- workers, or others, the department head may order the employee's reassignment, or compulsory leave pending results of a medical or psychological examination.
SECTION 19.03. REVISIONS TO PERSONNEL RULES AND REGULATIONS. The
City and the Association have met and conf erred on the Personnel Rules and Regulations adopted by the City Council on June 19, 1989 (Resolution No. 1989-57) exceptions to those Rules and Regulations are contained in this Memorandum of Understanding.
SECTION 19.04. PERSONNEL FILES
Consistent with Labor Code Section 1198.5, current and former employee has the right to inspect and receive a copy of the personnel records that the employer maintains relating to the employee’s performance or to any grievance concerning the employee.
SECTION 19.05. JOB TESTING AND INTERVIEWS
City employees who are applying for internal promotional opportunities will be allowed reasonable paid release time to attend City job testing and interviews. Release time shall be coordinated with the employee’s supervisor at least 5 working days prior to the requested time.
ARTICLE XX
MISCELLANEOUS
SECTION 20.01. REASONABLE ACCOMODATION. The City and the Union recognize that the City has an obligation under law to provide employment-related reasonable accommodations to qualified indi viduals with disabilities with in the meaning of and in accordance with its obligations under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. If by reas on of the aforesaid requirement, the City contemplates actions to provi de reasonable accommodation to an individual employee which are in potential conflict with any provisions of this Memorandum of Understanding, the Union will be advised of any such proposed accommodation prior to implementation by the City, and will be allowed the opportunity to discuss options to disregarding the MOU.
SECTION 20.02. TOBACCO PRODUCT USE. The City of Merced declares a hiring policy which disqualifies habitual users of to bacco products from elig ibility for employment.
Employees hired for positions in the bargai ning unit after January 1, 2007 (except reinstatements and re-hires after layoff after the effective date of this agreement) shall not be permitted to use any tobacco products, consistent with this policy. Failure to follow this policy will lead to disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal.
Employees hired into the bargaining unit prior to December 31, 2006 will be permitted to use tobacco products in a manner consistent with any restrictions established by Stat e law and this agreement.
Under no circumstances shall any tobacco product be used at any time inside a City building or vehicle or on City owned property.
ARTICLEXXI
LABOR-MANAGEMENT COMMITTEES
A. Department/division Level Labor-Management Committees (LMCs)
The City and AFSCME may establish LMCs at the department and/or division level.
1. Purpose and scope - The purpose of LMCs shall be limited to sharing information and discussing workplace issues. LMC particip ants are not authorized to engage in collective bargaining. LMC participants shall not di scuss specific individual employee discipline issues and grievances filed under this MOU.
2. Participants - Each party shall select its participants. The City shall provide paid release time for two bargaining unit members.
3. Scheduling of meetings - The parties shal l mutually determin e the frequency and length of LMC meetings. Neither party w ill unreasonably deny a request to meet.
4. Conduct during meetings - Participants sha ll conduct themselves in a professional manner and treat other participants with respect and dignity.
B. City Level Labor-Management Committee
1. Purpose and scope - The purpose of the LMC sha ll be limited to sharing information and discussing workplace is sues that involv e more than one department or division. LMC participants are not authorized to engage in collective bargaining. LMC participants shall not di scuss specific employee discipline issues and grievances filed under this MOU.
2. Participants - Each party sh all select its participants. The City shall provide paid release time for five (5) bargaining unit members.
3. Scheduling of meetings - The parties sh all mutually determine the frequency and length of LMC meetings.
4. Conduct during meetings - Participants shal l conduct themselves in a professional manner and treat other participants with respect and dignity.
ARTICLE XXII
WEINGARTEN RIGHTS
An employee may be represented by the union at an investigatory interview with his or her supervisor when the employee reasonably believes that the interview may be lead to a disciplinary action.
The employee must make a clear request for union representation before or during the interview. The employee cannot be punished for making this request.
After the employee makes the request, the employer must:
A. Inform the employee that the meeting is NOT an investigatory meeting, in which the employee’s answers could lead to discipline; or
B. Grant the request and delay questioning until the union representative has a chance to consult privately with the employee. However, an investigation shall not be unreasonably denied due to this request; or
C. Deny the request and end the interview immediately; or Give the employee a choice of: 1. Having the in terview without representation or 2. Ending the interview.
CLASS GRADE TITLE Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4 Step5
WC 263 ACCOUNT CLERK I 3,198$ 3,358$ 3,526$ 3,702$ 3,887$ WC 289 ACCOUNT CLERK II 3,526$ 3,702$ 3,887$ 4,082$ 4,286$ WC 309 ACCOUNT CLERK III 3,887$ 4,082$ 4,286$ 4,500$ 4,725$ WC 368 ACCOUNTANT I 5,411$ 5,681$ 5,965$ 6,264$ 6,577$ WC 388 ACCOUNTANT II 6,031$ 6,332$ 6,649$ 6,981$ 7,330$ WC 339 ACCOUNTING TECHNICIAN 4,500$ 4,725$ 4,961$ 5,210$ 5,470$ WC 341 ADMINISTRATIVE ANALYST 4,876$ 5,120$ 5,376$ 5,645$ 5,927$ WC 288 ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT I 3,631$ 3,813$ 4,004$ 4,204$ 4,414$ WC 316 ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT II 3,813$ 4,004$ 4,204$ 4,414$ 4,635$ WC 338 ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT III 4,345$ 4,563$ 4,791$ 5,030$ 5,282$ WC 406 ASSISTANT ENGINEER 6,840$ 7,182$ 7,541$ 7,919$ 8,314$ WC 364 ASSISTANT PLANNER 4,726$ 4,962$ 5,211$ 5,471$ 5,745$ WC 378 BUILDING INSPECTOR I 5,135$ 5,392$ 5,661$ 5,944$ 6,242$ WC 398 BUILDING INSPECTOR II 5,661$ 5,944$ 6,242$ 6,554$ 6,881$ WC 418 BUILDING INSPECTOR III 6,242$ 6,554$ 6,881$ 7,226$ 7,587$ WC 700 DEPUTY CITY CLERK 4,218$ 4,429$ 4,651$ 4,883$ 5,127$ WC 324 DEVELOPMENT SERVICES TECHNICIAN I 3,714$ 3,899$ 4,094$ 4,299$ 4,514$ WC 345 DEVELOPMENT SERVICES TECHNICIAN II 4,316$ 4,532$ 4,759$ 4,997$ 5,247$ WC 342 ENGINEERING TECHNICIAN I 4,199$ 4,409$ 4,630$ 4,861$ 5,104$ WC 362 ENGINEERING TECHNICIAN II 4,630$ 4,861$ 5,104$ 5,360$ 5,628$ WC 382 ENGINEERING TECHNICIAN III 5,104$ 5,360$ 5,628$ 5,909$ 6,204$ WC 402 ENGINEERING TECHNICIAN IV 6,204$ 6,515$ 6,840$ 7,182$ 7,541$ WC 416 FIRE INSPECTOR I 5,487$ 5,761$ 6,049$ 6,352$ 6,669$ WC 420 FIRE INSPECTOR II 6,049$ 6,352$ 6,669$ 7,003$ 7,353$ WC 350 GIS TECHNICIAN 4,520$ 4,746$ 4,983$ 5,233$ 5,494$ WC 374 HOUSING PROGRAM SPECIALIST I 5,011$ 5,261$ 5,524$ 5,800$ 6,090$ WC 385 HOUSING PROGRAM SPECIALIST II 5,524$ 5,800$ 6,090$ 6,395$ 6,715$ WC 358 HOUSING SPECIALIST 5,501$ 5,777$ 6,065$ 6,369$ 6,687$ WC 319 LABORATORY TECHNICIAN I 4,277$ 4,490$ 4,715$ 4,951$ 5,198$ WC 359 LABORATORY TECHNICIAN II 4,918$ 5,164$ 5,422$ 5,693$ 5,978$ WC 377 LABORATORY TECHNICIAN III 5,422$ 5,693$ 5,978$ 6,277$ 6,591$ WC 247 OFFICE ASSISTANT I 2,963$ 3,111$ 3,266$ 3,429$ 3,601$ WC 267 OFFICE ASSISTANT II 3,638$ 3,820$ 4,011$ 4,212$ 4,422$ WC 263 PEER SUPPORT SPECIALIST 3,198$ 3,358$ 3,526$ 3,702$ 3,887$ WC 379 PLAN EXAMINER I 5,139$ 5,396$ 5,666$ 5,949$ 6,247$ WC 399 PLAN EXAMINER II 6,120$ 6,426$ 6,748$ 7,085$ 7,439$ WC 384 PLANNER 5,319$ 5,584$ 5,864$ 6,157$ 6,465$ WC 322 PLANNING TECHNICIAN I 3,868$ 4,061$ 4,264$ 4,477$ 4,701$ WC 344 PLANNING TECHNICIAN II 4,264$ 4,477$ 4,701$ 4,936$ 5,183$ WC 282 POLICE RECORDS CLERK I 3,310$ 3,475$ 3,649$ 3,831$ 4,023$ WC 302 POLICE RECORDS CLERK II 3,744$ 3,931$ 4,128$ 4,334$ 4,551$ WC 281 RECORDS CLERK I 3,309$ 3,475$ 3,648$ 3,831$ 4,022$ WC 301 RECORDS CLERK II 3,648$ 3,831$ 4,022$ 4,223$ 4,435$ WC 347 RECREATION COORDINATOR 4,764$ 5,003$ 5,253$ 5,515$ 5,791$ WC 312 STOREKEEPER 3,894$ 4,089$ 4,293$ 4,508$ 4,733$ WC 350 SYSTEMS TECHNICIAN I 4,520$ 4,746$ 4,983$ 5,233$ 5,494$ WC 383 SYSTEMS TECHNICIAN II 4,983$ 5,233$ 5,494$ 5,769$ 6,057$ WC 386 SYSTEMS TECHNICIAN III 5,495$ 5,770$ 6,058$ 6,361$ 6,679$ All numbers have been rounded to the nearest $1
ATTACHMENT A
AFSCME WAGE SUMMARY (MONTHLY)
Effective PP14 - 6/24/2024
CLASS GRADE TITLE Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4 Step5
WC 263 ACCOUNT CLERK I 3,326$ 3,493$ 3,667$ 3,850$ 4,043$ WC 289 ACCOUNT CLERK II 3,667$ 3,850$ 4,043$ 4,245$ 4,457$ WC 309 ACCOUNT CLERK III 4,043$ 4,245$ 4,457$ 4,680$ 4,914$ WC 368 ACCOUNTANT I 5,627$ 5,909$ 6,204$ 6,514$ 6,840$ WC 388 ACCOUNTANT II 6,272$ 6,585$ 6,915$ 7,260$ 7,624$ WC 339 ACCOUNTING TECHNICIAN 4,680$ 4,914$ 5,160$ 5,418$ 5,689$ WC 341 ADMINISTRATIVE ANALYST 5,071$ 5,325$ 5,591$ 5,871$ 6,164$ WC 288 ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT I 3,777$ 3,966$ 4,164$ 4,372$ 4,591$ WC 316 ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT II 3,966$ 4,164$ 4,372$ 4,591$ 4,820$ WC 338 ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT III 4,519$ 4,745$ 4,982$ 5,231$ 5,493$ WC 406 ASSISTANT ENGINEER 7,114$ 7,470$ 7,843$ 8,235$ 8,647$ WC 364 ASSISTANT PLANNER 4,915$ 5,161$ 5,419$ 5,690$ 5,974$ WC 378 BUILDING INSPECTOR I 5,340$ 5,607$ 5,888$ 6,182$ 6,491$ WC 398 BUILDING INSPECTOR II 5,888$ 6,182$ 6,491$ 6,816$ 7,157$ WC 418 BUILDING INSPECTOR III 6,491$ 6,816$ 7,157$ 7,515$ 7,890$ WC 700 DEPUTY CITY CLERK 4,387$ 4,606$ 4,837$ 5,078$ 5,332$ WC 324 DEVELOPMENT SERVICES TECHNICIAN I 3,862$ 4,055$ 4,258$ 4,471$ 4,695$ WC 345 DEVELOPMENT SERVICES TECHNICIAN II 4,489$ 4,714$ 4,949$ 5,197$ 5,457$ WC 342 ENGINEERING TECHNICIAN I 4,367$ 4,586$ 4,815$ 5,056$ 5,309$ WC 362 ENGINEERING TECHNICIAN II 4,815$ 5,056$ 5,309$ 5,574$ 5,853$ WC 382 ENGINEERING TECHNICIAN III 5,309$ 5,574$ 5,853$ 6,145$ 6,453$ WC 402 ENGINEERING TECHNICIAN IV 6,453$ 6,775$ 7,114$ 7,470$ 7,843$ WC 416 FIRE INSPECTOR I 5,706$ 5,992$ 6,291$ 6,606$ 6,936$ WC 420 FIRE INSPECTOR II 6,291$ 6,606$ 6,936$ 7,283$ 7,647$ WC 350 GIS TECHNICIAN 4,701$ 4,936$ 5,183$ 5,442$ 5,714$ WC 374 HOUSING PROGRAM SPECIALIST I 5,211$ 5,471$ 5,745$ 6,032$ 6,334$ WC 385 HOUSING PROGRAM SPECIALIST II 5,745$ 6,032$ 6,334$ 6,651$ 6,983$ WC 358 HOUSING SPECIALIST 5,722$ 6,008$ 6,308$ 6,623$ 6,955$ WC 319 LABORATORY TECHNICIAN I 4,448$ 4,670$ 4,903$ 5,149$ 5,406$ WC 359 LABORATORY TECHNICIAN II 5,115$ 5,370$ 5,639$ 5,921$ 6,217$ WC 377 LABORATORY TECHNICIAN III 5,639$ 5,921$ 6,217$ 6,528$ 6,854$ WC 247 OFFICE ASSISTANT I 3,081$ 3,235$ 3,397$ 3,567$ 3,745$ WC 267 OFFICE ASSISTANT II 3,784$ 3,973$ 4,172$ 4,380$ 4,599$ WC 263 PEER SUPPORT SPECIALIST 3,326$ 3,493$ 3,667$ 3,850$ 4,043$ WC 379 PLAN EXAMINER I 5,345$ 5,612$ 5,892$ 6,187$ 6,496$ WC 399 PLAN EXAMINER II 6,365$ 6,683$ 7,018$ 7,368$ 7,737$ WC 384 PLANNER 5,531$ 5,808$ 6,098$ 6,403$ 6,723$ WC 322 PLANNING TECHNICIAN I 4,022$ 4,223$ 4,435$ 4,656$ 4,889$ WC 344 PLANNING TECHNICIAN II 4,435$ 4,656$ 4,889$ 5,134$ 5,390$ WC 282 POLICE RECORDS CLERK I 3,442$ 3,614$ 3,795$ 3,985$ 4,184$ WC 302 POLICE RECORDS CLERK II 3,894$ 4,088$ 4,293$ 4,507$ 4,733$ WC 281 RECORDS CLERK I 3,441$ 3,614$ 3,794$ 3,984$ 4,183$ WC 301 RECORDS CLERK II 3,794$ 3,984$ 4,183$ 4,392$ 4,612$ WC 347 RECREATION COORDINATOR 4,955$ 5,203$ 5,463$ 5,736$ 6,023$ WC 312 STOREKEEPER 4,050$ 4,253$ 4,465$ 4,688$ 4,923$ WC 350 SYSTEMS TECHNICIAN I 4,701$ 4,936$ 5,183$ 5,442$ 5,714$ WC 383 SYSTEMS TECHNICIAN II 5,183$ 5,442$ 5,714$ 6,000$ 6,300$ WC 386 SYSTEMS TECHNICIAN III 5,715$ 6,001$ 6,301$ 6,616$ 6,947$ All numbers have been rounded to the nearest $1
ATTACHMENT A
AFSCME WAGE SUMMARY (MONTHLY)
Effective PP14 - 6/23/2025
CLASS GRADE TITLE Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4 Step5
WC 263 ACCOUNT CLERK I 3,459$ 3,632$ 3,814$ 4,004$ 4,205$ WC 289 ACCOUNT CLERK II 3,814$ 4,004$ 4,205$ 4,415$ 4,636$ WC 309 ACCOUNT CLERK III 4,205$ 4,415$ 4,636$ 4,867$ 5,111$ WC 368 ACCOUNTANT I 5,852$ 6,145$ 6,452$ 6,775$ 7,114$ WC 388 ACCOUNTANT II 6,523$ 6,849$ 7,191$ 7,551$ 7,928$ WC 339 ACCOUNTING TECHNICIAN 4,867$ 5,111$ 5,366$ 5,635$ 5,916$ WC 341 ADMINISTRATIVE ANALYST 5,274$ 5,538$ 5,815$ 6,106$ 6,411$ WC 288 ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT I 3,928$ 4,124$ 4,330$ 4,547$ 4,774$ WC 316 ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT II 4,124$ 4,330$ 4,547$ 4,774$ 5,013$ WC 338 ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT III 4,700$ 4,935$ 5,182$ 5,441$ 5,713$ WC 406 ASSISTANT ENGINEER 7,399$ 7,768$ 8,157$ 8,565$ 8,993$ WC 364 ASSISTANT PLANNER 5,112$ 5,367$ 5,636$ 5,917$ 6,213$ WC 378 BUILDING INSPECTOR I 5,554$ 5,832$ 6,123$ 6,430$ 6,751$ WC 398 BUILDING INSPECTOR II 6,123$ 6,430$ 6,751$ 7,089$ 7,443$ WC 418 BUILDING INSPECTOR III 6,751$ 7,089$ 7,443$ 7,815$ 8,206$ WC 700 DEPUTY CITY CLERK 4,562$ 4,791$ 5,030$ 5,282$ 5,546$ WC 324 DEVELOPMENT SERVICES TECHNICIAN I 4,017$ 4,218$ 4,428$ 4,650$ 4,882$ WC 345 DEVELOPMENT SERVICES TECHNICIAN II 4,669$ 4,902$ 5,147$ 5,405$ 5,675$ WC 342 ENGINEERING TECHNICIAN I 4,542$ 4,769$ 5,008$ 5,258$ 5,521$ WC 362 ENGINEERING TECHNICIAN II 5,008$ 5,258$ 5,521$ 5,797$ 6,087$ WC 382 ENGINEERING TECHNICIAN III 5,521$ 5,797$ 6,087$ 6,391$ 6,711$ WC 402 ENGINEERING TECHNICIAN IV 6,711$ 7,046$ 7,399$ 7,768$ 8,157$ WC 416 FIRE INSPECTOR I 5,935$ 6,231$ 6,543$ 6,870$ 7,213$ WC 420 FIRE INSPECTOR II 6,543$ 6,870$ 7,213$ 7,574$ 7,953$ WC 350 GIS TECHNICIAN 4,889$ 5,133$ 5,390$ 5,660$ 5,943$ WC 374 HOUSING PROGRAM SPECIALIST I 5,419$ 5,690$ 5,975$ 6,274$ 6,587$ WC 385 HOUSING PROGRAM SPECIALIST II 5,975$ 6,274$ 6,587$ 6,917$ 7,262$ WC 358 HOUSING SPECIALIST 5,950$ 6,248$ 6,560$ 6,888$ 7,233$ WC 319 LABORATORY TECHNICIAN I 4,625$ 4,857$ 5,100$ 5,355$ 5,622$ WC 359 LABORATORY TECHNICIAN II 5,319$ 5,585$ 5,865$ 6,158$ 6,466$ WC 377 LABORATORY TECHNICIAN III 5,865$ 6,158$ 6,466$ 6,789$ 7,128$ WC 247 OFFICE ASSISTANT I 3,204$ 3,365$ 3,533$ 3,709$ 3,895$ WC 267 OFFICE ASSISTANT II 3,935$ 4,132$ 4,338$ 4,555$ 4,783$ WC 263 PEER SUPPORT SPECIALIST 3,459$ 3,632$ 3,814$ 4,004$ 4,205$ WC 379 PLAN EXAMINER I 5,558$ 5,836$ 6,128$ 6,435$ 6,756$ WC 399 PLAN EXAMINER II 6,620$ 6,951$ 7,298$ 7,663$ 8,046$ WC 384 PLANNER 5,753$ 6,040$ 6,342$ 6,659$ 6,992$ WC 322 PLANNING TECHNICIAN I 4,183$ 4,392$ 4,612$ 4,842$ 5,085$ WC 344 PLANNING TECHNICIAN II 4,612$ 4,842$ 5,085$ 5,339$ 5,606$ WC 282 POLICE RECORDS CLERK I 3,580$ 3,759$ 3,947$ 4,144$ 4,351$ WC 302 POLICE RECORDS CLERK II 4,049$ 4,252$ 4,464$ 4,688$ 4,922$ WC 281 RECORDS CLERK I 3,579$ 3,758$ 3,946$ 4,143$ 4,350$ WC 301 RECORDS CLERK II 3,946$ 4,143$ 4,350$ 4,568$ 4,796$ WC 347 RECREATION COORDINATOR 5,153$ 5,411$ 5,681$ 5,966$ 6,264$ WC 312 STOREKEEPER 4,212$ 4,423$ 4,644$ 4,876$ 5,120$ WC 350 SYSTEMS TECHNICIAN I 4,889$ 5,133$ 5,390$ 5,660$ 5,943$ WC 383 SYSTEMS TECHNICIAN II 5,390$ 5,660$ 5,943$ 6,240$ 6,552$ WC 386 SYSTEMS TECHNICIAN III 5,944$ 6,241$ 6,553$ 6,880$ 7,224$ All numbers have been rounded to the nearest $1
ATTACHMENT A
AFSCME WAGE SUMMARY (MONTHLY)
Effective PP14 - 6/22/2026