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Proposal to raise nonunion staff pay to 3% tied 3–3 and fails
Summary
A proposal to raise nonunion municipal employees' pay from 1% to 3% failed on a 3–3 tie during Pacific’s June 22 special meeting; proponents cited retention and anticipated union demands, while opponents cited a general fund deficit.
A motion to increase nonunion city employees’ pay to 3% — raised by Alderman Cleave on June 22 — failed on a 3–3 tie, leaving the 1% across-the-board increase in place for now.
Alderman Cleave said he expected unions to press for at least 3% raises and proposed the same raise for nonunion staff to retain employees. He presented a detailed estimate of the fiscal impact: "For those employees, $28,004.96," he said. Opponents responded that the general fund was already in deficit; one alderman stated, "We're $56,000 in the general fund," and asked where the money would come from.
The board debated whether police and public works employees — who have collective bargaining agreements or memoranda of understanding — were bound to parity with other staff. Members asked the city attorney to clarify the legal differences between memoranda and binding contracts for bargaining units. After discussion, the chair called the question; the vote result was recorded as a tie, and the motion did not carry.
The board explicitly preserved the 1% increase currently budgeted for January 1 and indicated pay negotiations with unions would continue before contract dates were revisited.
The immediate outcome is status quo: nonunion employees remain on the 1% increase now in the adopted budget; aldermen requested staff provide funding options and more detailed cost breakdowns if the matter is revisited.
