DATE:
July 16, 2024
19
TO:
Board of Supervisors
SUBJECT
Title
INCLUDING THE IMPACT OF COST-OF-LIVING DIFFERENTIALS IN SAN DIEGO COUNTY AS A PART OF COMPENSATION ANALYSIS FOR COUNTY EMPLOYEES (DISTRICTS: ALL) [WITHDRAWN]
Body
OVERVIEW
As one of the region's largest employers, the County of San Diego is recognized as a leader in fostering a dynamic and inclusive work environment and setting a high standard for public sector employment. In recent years, the County has made strong commitments towards implementing forward-thinking policies that advance equity and employee well-being, and that recognize our workforce as the cornerstone to delivering the high-quality services and programs that our communities and residents rely upon.
As part of this approach, in 2021, the County collaborated with employee groups to utilize compensation studies to compare the wages of employee classifications for 25 represented bargaining units and non-represented employees with those in 13 other counties across the state. This compensation analysis was conducted by Koff and Associates and aimed to provide data that could inform discussions and decisions around compensation levels. Compensation studies are crucial for public sector management for ensuring salaries and benefits are set at levels that allow recruitment and retention of talent while promoting transparency and responsible resource management. To address the impact of regional differences in wages, the 2021 compensation studies used a "cost-of-labor" methodology that focuses on what other employers are paying for similar jobs within the region.
According to the UC Berkeley Labor Center, the cost-of-labor methodology has several weaknesses: (1) public sector work is complex with a diversity of occupations and responsibilities that are not easily compared with private sector benchmarks, (2) unlike the private sector, public sector compensation is not based on the market alone, but reflects budget constraints, re...
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