The City of Sparks, Nevada, enters into labor agreements with its various bargaining units.  The Operating Engineers Local No. 3 Supervisory contract expired June 30, 2017. The City of Sparks (City) and Operating Engineers Local No. 3 Supervisory Unit, submit a one year agreement covering July 1, 2017 through June 30, 2018 for your consideration. The parties began meeting in the Spring of 2017, and continued to meet on a regular basis to discuss the terms and conditions of the agreement. The bargaining agreement proposed today is the result of those meetings. The City and the Unit believe the attached agreement fairly represents a good faith effort to reach agreement involving wage rates and benefits. The Unit ratified the agreement.  Now both negotiating teams recommend ratification/approval by council.

Following is a Summary of Tentative Agreement reached between the parties.  This summary outlines the negotiated contract changes.  Also attached to this report are a strike out, the final version of the proposed agreement and a financial impact statement.

Summary of Tentative Agreements:

Section 1: Administration, Article D: Duration of the Agreement.   This section reflects the new contract period of July 1, 2017 thru June 30, 2018.  There is no direct cost related to this contract change.

Section 2: Pay, Article A: Pay Rates.  Operating Engineers Local No. 3 Supervisory and the City negotiating team have agreed to a two percent (2%) Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) retroactive to the first full pay period after July 1, 2017.  The financial impact of the COLA is an estimated $45,000 every year in base pay, as shown in the attached table.  Of that amount, $16,000 is General Fund and the remaining $29,000 is in other funds.

Section 2: Pay, Article G:  Stand by Pay. Under this article, you will find a language change replacing the word “deemed” with “assigned”.  This contract language change is for clarification of meaning only, and has no financial impact.

Section 3: Benefits, Article D Tuition Reimbursement. The parties agreed to increase the tuition reimbursement from $1,500 to $1,800.  The financial impact of this increase is estimated at a maximum of $7,200 per year if every person covered by the contract were to receive the maximum reimbursement, with $2,700 of that amount in the General Fund and the remaining $4,500 in other funds.  However, the more realistic estimate of the financial impact based upon historical utilization is an estimated $ 480 per year across all funds.

Section 4: Leave Benefits, Article B Annual Leave.  This modification incorporates MOU language allowing employees in this group to take annual leave in any increment.  There is no financial impact from this change. 

Section 4: Leave Benefits, Article C Sick Leave.  This modification incorporates MOU language allowing employees in this group to take sick leave in any increment.  There is no financial impact from this change.  

Section 4: Leave Benefits, Article D Sick Leave Bank.  This modification changes the number of representatives on the Committee from two (2) to three (3).  There is no financial impact from this change. 

1. The Council may choose to approve the proposed bargaining agreement.
2. The Council may choose not to approve the proposed bargaining agreement.
3. The Council may choose not to approve the proposed bargaining agreement and direct the City Manager toward another alternative.

I move to approve the bargaining agreement between the City of Sparks and the Operating Engineers Local No. 3 Supervisory Unit covering the period of July 1, 2017 through June 30, 2018.