Agenda Item #13.3
For Council Meeting of: September 29, 2026
CITY OF SANTA ROSA
CITY COUNCIL
TO: MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
FROM: GOLBOU GHASSEMIEH, ACTING HUMAN RESOURCES DIRECTOR & BRAD THOMSON, HUMAN RESOURCES ANALYST, HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT SUBJECT: CLASSIFICATION AND COMPENSATION & SALARY PLAN AND SCHEDULE AGENDA ACTION: RESOLUTION
RECOMMENDATION
The Human Resources Department recommends that the Council, by resolution: 1) receive the Classification and Compensation Study Report; 2) approve the proposed new classifications, salary ranges, reclassifications, and related position-allocation and budget-document changes; and 3) adopt the updated Salary Plan and Schedule. The adopted FY 2026-27 budget contains sufficient appropriations to implement the recommended changes, and no additional appropriation is required.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This item implements an additional phase of the Citywide Classification and Compensation Study. The proposed actions include establishing new classifications and salary ranges, reclassifying specified positions, approving related position allocation changes, and adopting an updated Salary Plan and Schedule. Following implementation of this phase, approximately 47% of the Study’s recommendations will have been implemented. The proposed changes will increase ongoing annual salary costs by approximately $218,642, plus associated benefit costs. Existing FY 2026-27 appropriations are sufficient, and no additional appropriation is required.
GOAL
This item relates to Council Goal #1, Achieve and Maintain Fiscal Sustainability and Budgeting Excellence, by supporting employee recruitment and retention and promoting organizational stability.
BACKGROUND/PRIOR COUNCIL REVIEW
The City, in collaboration with the Union Coalition, agreed by Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with all non-sworn bargaining units, adopted by the City Council in November 2021, that a Citywide classification and compensation study would benefit the organization. The Human Resources Department (HR) worked with the Union Coalition, through the Request for Proposals (RFP) process started in spring 2022, to identify and select an experienced classification and compensation expert to conduct the study. As a result, by winter 2022, Gallagher Benefit Services, Inc. (formerly Koff and Associates) was mutually chosen as the consultant to conduct the Citywide Classification and Compensation Study (“the study”).
The study began in early 2023, with the consultant’s data collection process, interviews with incumbents and supervisors, analysis of the data, and meetings held with department leaders to arrive at initial recommendations that were provided to the Human Resources Department (HR) for review in the fall and winter of 2023.
After receiving Gallagher’s initial recommendations and completing its first review of the recommendations, HR engaged with the City’s leadership in the Spring of 2024 to review the proposed changes and receive their feedback. Feedback was evaluated by HR and the consultant, resulting in updates to the recommendations. Simultaneously, HR met with the Union Coalition between the fall 2023 through spring 2024 to agree upon comparator agencies for compensation data collection, as well as data points for the survey, the initial list of benchmarks to be surveyed, and the process for sharing information and moving the study forward through the phases of review and feedback.
The Human Resources Department also held six (6) information sessions in the month of May 2024, to prepare employees to receive the proposed changes. Communication was provided by HR to all employees via email throughout the process.
By June 15, 2024, all preliminary classification specifications and the initial preliminary compensation survey were provided by HR to the Union Coalition. The Human Resources Department engaged in a thorough and inclusive review process with employees, department representatives and selected subject matter experts, and labor representatives to finalize the classification specifications and salary recommendations of the classification and compensation changes presented in this item that are ready for implementation. Implementation will continue in phases as classifications become ready to bring forward after meet-and-confer process.
The Human Resources Department has held a total of 92 initial classification and compensation review meetings with interested parties, including approximately 800 incumbents and their representatives, covering all 285 current classifications. Following the proposed actions, approximately 47% of the Study’s classification recommendations will have been formally implemented. Human Resources continues to be engaged in the ongoing follow-up and review process to address feedback, to follow up with parties, and to move the outstanding classifications toward implementation.
Additionally, the Human Resources Department met and conferred with labor representatives to reach an agreement, through side-letters, regarding the execution of equity adjustments that had been agreed upon in the current MOUs with certain bargaining units, previously approved by Council. The equity adjustments were implemented on time. As part of the side-letter agreements, HR also agreed to conduct a pay compression/compaction analysis and identify current classifications potentially affected by pay compression. This required a citywide analysis of all departments and the classifications allocated to them to identify any potentially compressed differentials between subordinate and supervisory/management classifications. The Human Resources Department agreed to propose solutions to address the identified classifications experiencing pay compression/compaction to determine the estimated increase in annual salary costs. Consequently, in some instances, the proposed solutions resulted in new instances of pay compression which then had to be additionally resolved as a part of the goal of creating more appropriate pay differentials where warranted. The agreed-upon equity adjustments and compaction corrections were implemented on October 21, 2025 (Council Item #13.7). As a result of the wage corrections, the City’s recruitment and retention rates have seen significant improvement, helping stabilize the City’s staffing and service delivery.
The Human Resources Department would like to thank labor representatives, stewards, leaders, managers/supervisors, and employees for the time, effort, and collaboration towards meeting our mutual goals of completing this important work for the City’s classification and compensation structure to be updated and for future maintenance. The time spent meeting with employees across the organization has been valuable to the organization.
ANALYSIS
The Human Resources Department has prepared the Classification and Compensation Study Report for this phase of implementation, attached as Exhibit A to the Resolution. Exhibit B identifies the proposed classification actions for each position included in this phase. Exhibit C establishes the recommended salary ranges for the proposed new classifications. Exhibit D identifies the related position and budget-document changes. Exhibit E is the updated Citywide Salary Plan and Schedule.
Section 570.5 of Title 2 of the California Code of Regulations requires a CalPERS contracting agency’s pay schedule to be approved and adopted by its governing body as a standalone document identifying the pay rate for each position. The updated Salary Plan and Schedule incorporating the proposed changes is attached as Exhibit E to the Resolution.
FISCAL IMPACT
The proposed salary adjustments and reclassifications will increase ongoing annual salary expenditures by approximately $218,642, allocated as follows:
General Fund: $84,036
Water Enterprise Funds: $34,621
Transit Enterprise Funds: $42,009
IT Internal Service Funds: $57,976
Additionally, there will be impacts on Retirement, Workers’ compensation, and other benefit costs due to changes in wages, although they are less substantial than the salary costs. The adopted FY 2026-27 budgets for the affected funds contain sufficient appropriations to absorb the salary and benefit costs attributable to the proposed implementation date. No additional appropriation is required. Ongoing costs will be incorporated into future annual budgets. The action will have an ongoing impact on the General Fund and the identified enterprise and internal service funds.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
Pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15378(b)(2), (4), and (5), the recommended action is not a project subject to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because it consists of continuing administrative and organizational activities and fiscal changes related to employee classifications and compensation and does not commit the City to any specific physical activity that may result in a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment..
BOARD/COMMISSION/COMMITTEE REVIEW AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Not applicable.
NOTIFICATION
Not applicable.
ATTACHMENTS
Resolution
Exhibit A – Classification and Compensation Study Report Exhibit B – Classification Changes
Exhibit C – New Salary Steps
Exhibit D – Summary of Budget Changes
Exhibit E – Salary Plan and Schedule
PRESENTER(S)
golbou ghassemieh, Acting Human Resources Director
Brad Thomson, Human Resources Analyst
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