Carson Employees agree to new contract

Carson City Board of Supervisors on Thursday will consider approving a 2 percent cost-of-living increase for rank-and-file city employees and a new three-year contract with the Carson City Employees Association.

City management and the Carson City Employees Association reached agreement on a contract that calls for a 1.51 percent wage increase for the current fiscal year that began in July 2002, a 1.02 percent increase beginning this July and another 2.5 percent increase granted July 2004.

The agreement also includes a longevity benefit that rewards employees with raises each year for staying with the city, said Ann Beck, city human resources director.

Employees had agreed to a two-year contract that included a 1.6 percent cost-of-living adjustment plus "longevity" package, which was projected as a .4 percent wage increase in the first year, retroactive to July 1, 2002, and a 1.6 percent cost-of-living adjustment effective July 1.

City supervisors rejected the contract at a meeting in mid-December saying it was "front-loaded," or more than they could pay in their budget.

The employees' association then filed the complaint with the Local Government Employee-Management Relations Board in Las Vegas on Dec. 31.

In the complaint, the association asked the board to find the city bargained in bad faith, order the city to ratify the collective bargaining agreement finalized by the union after 10 months of negotiations with city management and pay for attorney fees.

City management and employees representatives later went back to the table and arrived at the new contract agreement. The employees have ratified the agreement.

Supervisors will discuss labor negotiations in a closed session Thursday and then consider the pay raises and the bargaining agreement in open meeting.

IF YOU GO

What: Carson City Board of Supervisors regular meeting

When: 8:30 a.m. Thursday

Where: Sierra Room, Carson City Community Center