City Council Memorandum
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: AUGUST 16, 2022 FROM: HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT WARDS: ALL SUBJECT: REVISIONS TO THE MASTER FRINGE BENEFITS AND SALARY PLAN FOR THE TITLE CHANGE OF THE EXISTING BUILDING PERMIT TECHNICIAN CLASSIFICATION; CREATION OF THE CLASSIFICATIONS AND SALARY RANGES FOR THE SENIOR PERMIT TECHNICIAN AND THE HVAC SUPERVISOR; UNIT DESIGNATION CHANGES FOR THE CITY PLANNER AND THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT MANAGER CLASSIFICATIONS; DELETION OF THE LEGAL SERVICES MANAGER CLASSIFICATION.
ISSUE:
Approve a revision to the Master Fringe Benefits and Salary Plan for the title change of the existing Building Permit Technician classification; creation of the classifications and salary ranges for the Senior Permit Technician and the HVAC Supervisor; unit designation changes for the City Planner and the Economic Development Manager classifications; deletion of the Legal Services Manager classification.
RECOMMENDATION:
That the City Council
Approve the title change of the existing Building Permit Technician classification; Approve the creation of the classifications and salary ranges for the Senior Permit Technician and the HVAC Supervisor; Approve the unit designation changes for the City Planner and the Economic Development Manager classifications; Approve the deletion of the Legal Services Manager classification; Adopt the attached Resolution amending the Master Fringe Benefits and Salary Plan to reflect the title change of the Building Permit Technician classification; creation of the classifications and salary ranges for the Senior Permit Technician and HVAC Supervisor; unit designation changes for the City Planner and the Economic Development Manager classifications; and the deletion of the Legal Services Manager classification.
DISCUSSION:
Title Change and Revisions to Existing Classification and New Proposed City Classification-Permit Technician Series:
The Building Permit Technician classification is currently utilized in the Building & Safety Division of the Community and Economic Development Department (CEDD) and City Engineering Services Division of the Public Works Department. In addition to the current department, the proposed revision to the classification creates a broader classification which allows other departments, Public Works (PW) and Public Utilities (PU), the ability to also utilize this classification. Duties specific to each department have been incorporated into the job description. In order to utilize across departments, the classification title will need to be updated from Building Permit Technician to Permit Technician to remove the reference specific to the Building Division.
Additionally, a new classification is proposed to provide the Permit Technician with a promotional path to a Senior level. The proposed Senior Permit Technician will be the advanced journey level in the Permit Technician series and will organize, oversee, assign, and review the work of staff engaged in permitting and other administrative duties associated with development services and the permit counter operation; perform complex technical duties requiring specialized knowledge; and provide highly responsible technical support to the assigned supervisor. This position performs advanced level administrative, clerical, and technical work which involves the processing of routine permit applications and plans, calculating fees, issuing permits, and reviewing minor construction, building or utility plans for City standards and code compliance and completeness; provides efficient and courteous customer service at the public counter, over the phone, and online through the public permit portal; and to perform related duties as assigned. This class is distinguished from the Permit Technician in that the incumbent acts in a lead capacity and handles the most advanced and complex assignments in coordinating the duties of the permit counter.
At the time this report was prepared there were six incumbents that will be re-titled from Building Permit Technician to Permit Technician (five in CEDD and one in PW). There will be no fiscal impact for the re-title since there is no change to the salary steps for the Permit Technician classification (prev. Building Permit Technician). The Community and Economic Development Department intends to reclassify one existing Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) Permit Technician position for placement into the Senior Permit Technician classification; this will only impact the position and no current incumbents, as incumbents must undergo the annual reclassification process to determine if they are performing duties at the higher level.
To determine appropriate salary placement for the senior level, the Human Resources Department conducted a market analysis of comparable classifications and salaries utilizing the City’s approved market basket. In addition, an internal comparison with the existing Building Permit Technician classification salary range was also conducted to ensure proper placement of the salary range for the senior level. It is recommended that maximum salary placement be closely aligned to the market average salary and overlap the existing Building Permit Technician salary starting at Step 5 of the existing salary steps as the minimum salary as illustrated below. The City met and conferred with the corresponding labor group (SEIU Local 721) to discuss the proposed changes to the existing classification and the creation of the new Senior level and all parties were in agreement. The market salary survey is illustrated in Exhibit B.
Building Permit Technician (Permit Technician)
(Existing Salary Steps-Monthly)
Tier 1 Tier 2/3
Step 1
$3,983
Step 1
$3,754
Step 2
$4,180
Step 2
$3,940
Step 3
$4,390
Step 3
$4,139
Step 4
$4,609
Step 4
$4,346
Step 5
$4,840
Step 5
$4,562
Step 6
$5,083
Step 6
$4,790
Step 7
$5,336
Step 7
$5,030
Senior Permit Technician (New Classification Proposed)
(Proposed Salary Steps-Monthly)
Tier 1 Tier 2/3
Step 1
$4,840
Step 1
$4,562
Step 2
$5,083
Step 2
$4,790
Step 3
$5,336
Step 3
$5,030
Step 4
$5,603
Step 4
$5,282
Step 5
$5,883
Step 5
$5,546
Step 6
$6,177
Step 6
$5,823
The title change of the existing Building Permit Technician and new Senior Permit Technician is illustrated below:
Job Code
Existing Classification Title
New Title
6955
Building Permit Technician (BU 20)
Permit Technician (BU 20)
Job Code
New Classification Title
Proposed Salary
New
Senior Permit Technician (BU 20)
Tier 1 – $4,840 - $6,177
Tier 2/3 – 4,562 - $5,823
New Classification Proposed for the Supervisory Unit – HVAC Supervisor:
The Human Resources Department received a request from the General Services Department to review the duties performed by an incumbent performing advanced HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) duties to determine the appropriate classification. Due to the needs of the department, level of experience required, and the complexity of the duties assigned, it is necessary to create a supervisory classification specific to the HVAC specialty area to oversee assigned HVAC staff and to efficiently complete HVAC maintenance and repairs throughout City facilities.
The HVAC Supervisor will plan, assign, supervise, review, and participate in the work of semi-skilled workers and skilled technicians in the installation, maintenance, repair, alteration of mechanical and electrical systems equipment and fixtures related to the City’s various heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems; and to do related work as required.
A market analysis of comparable classifications and salaries utilizing the City’s approved market basket was completed. Since there are no comparable classification in the market basket specific to HVAC, an internal comparison with the existing comparable supervisory level classifications was conducted to determine the appropriate salary range. It is recommended that the new HVAC Supervisor be equivalent in salary to the existing Building Services Supervisor classification. There is one incumbent who will be reclassified into the new classification.
The recommended unit designation and salary range for the new classification is illustrated below:
Proposed Classification Title
Proposed
Monthly Salary Range
HVAC Supervisor (BU 50-Supervisory)
$6,881 - $8,366
Unit Designation Changes
To ensure consistency and alignment with comparable classifications, the City Planner and Economic Development Manager classifications will be reassigned from the Management unit to the Senior Management unit.
Job Code
Classification Title and Current Unit
Classification Title and
New Unit Designation
7966
City Planner (BU 10-Management)
City Planner (BU 07-Sr. Management)
8155
Economic Development Manager
(BU 10-Management)
Economic Development Manager
(BU 07-Sr. Management)
Deletion of Classification
The Legal Services Manager classification is no longer utilized and will be deleted from the active classifications.
Job Code
Deleted Classification Title
8925
Legal Services Manager (BU 10-Management)
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT:
This action supports Strategic Priority 5 – High Performing Government and Goal 5.1: Attract, develop, engage and retain a diverse and highly skilled workforce across the entire City organization.
This item aligns with each of the five Cross-Cutting Threads as follows:
Community Trust – The new classifications allow the city to accurately align with comparable market classifications to attract the appropriate workforce skillset to efficiently maintain City services.
Equity – New classifications are reviewed against with comparable classifications within the approved City market basket and internally to ensure the appropriate alignment with comparable internal classifications.
Fiscal Responsibility – New classifications are reviewed both internally and within the City’s comparable market basket to ensure appropriate salary alignment.
Innovation – New classifications are necessary to ensure the City is progressive on new fields of study, changes to specific fields related to certifications, associated technology, educational and experience requirements.
Sustainability & Resiliency – New classifications are adopted to ensure employees can work effectively and efficiently; and at the same time retain a diverse range of highly skilled employees who can adapt to the changing needs of the City both internally and externally.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The total fiscal impact of this action is estimated at $28,152 - $32,148 in base salary costs. One reclassification of a Permit Technician position to the Senior Permit Technician classification is estimated to result in a monthly cost increase of $841 to the Tier 1 max salary. One reclassification to the proposed new classification of HVAC Supervisor is estimated to result in a monthly cost increase in base salary costs to the min/max salary range of $1,505–$1,838. There will be no fiscal impact for the re-title of the Building Permit Technician classification to Permit Technician classification since there is no change to the salary steps for the Permit Technician classification; reassigning the City Planner and Economic Development Manager classifications from the Management unit to the Senior Management unit; or, deleting the Legal Services Manager classification.
Prepared by: Rene Goldman, Human Resources Director
Certified as to
Availability of funds: Edward Enriquez, Interim Assistant City Manager/Chief Financial Officer/City Treasurer
Approved by: Rafael Guzman, Assistant City Manager
Approved as to form: Phaedra A. Norton, City Attorney
Attachments:
Resolution Amending the Fringe Benefits and Salary Plan Exhibit A – Job Code Table-New Classifications
Exhibit B – Senior Permit Technician Survey Data
Fringe Benefits and Salary Plan
Revisions to the Master Fringe Benefits and Salary Plan ● Page 2