sr-112481-11dSanta Monica, Ca" 'ornia November 16, 1981
T0: Mayor and City Council
FROM: City Staff N®V ~+ 4 ~~~
SUBJECT: Additional Holiday
Introduction
This report provides information which Council requested regarding costs
and options for declaring Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday a City holi-
day.
Background
Permanent City employees currently have eleven paid holidays per year and
there is some variation of designated holidays between bargaining groups,
as indicated on the attached chart. Time off with pay has customarily
been a subject of collective bargaining. Specific provision is made in
nine of the thirteen current MOU's for "A11 other holidays declared by
the City Council".
Alternatives
1. Offer a twelfth holiday to each bargaining unit as their contracts
come due. Approximately thirty-five management employees would gain
the holiday this January and the last group to gain the holiday wo~.:1d
do so in January 1986 if this alternative were pursued. Certain
advantages of standardized holidays .(.such as energy savings at
closed facilities) would be lost under this alternative. Supervisors
and managers would have the. day off for several years before their
employees did. This is a cost-conscious approach in that the bene-
fit would be granted in the context of a "total package" for which
budget provision was made.
2. "Trade" an existing holiday for .the new holiday. This would be a
"no cost" approach. Some informal bargaining process would be neces-
sary with each of the thirteen groups. Whereas precedent exists for
a "trade" (several years ago Veterans Day and Admissions Day were
dropped by most groups to gain the day after Thanksgiving and a
Floating holiday) another January holiday may not have much "trade"
Q~~)
appeal. This could result in some groups agreeing to the trade
and others choosing to retain the existing schedule. As in al-
ternative 1, the advantages of a standardized holiday schedule
would be lost.
3. Declare January 15 an official .City holiday and grant it to all
employees as a twelfth paid. holiday. This alternative would stan-
dardize the holiday for all employees, providing for consistent
supervision and closing. certain City facilities for the day. Ob-
servation of the holiday would begin in 1982 for all employees.
This alternative has the greatest immediate cost.
Costs
Funds are budgeted to cover straight-time employee salaries for a full
year, regardless of whether individual days of that year are work days,
holidays, vacation days or sick leave days. Eleven days of overtime
is budgeted for personnel who must work on holidays because they are
paid both for the time worked and for the holiday foregone. These costs
for the twelfth holiday are estimated as follows:
Transportation $18,436
Police $20,460
Fire $10,514
Maintenance $ 4,065
Other* $ 1,500
$54,975
^Minor expenses for the Library, Recreation and Parks and the Auditorium.
First quarter expenditure reports suggest that salary savings may cover
these costs.
Recommendation
If Council wishes to recognize Dr. King's birthday, it is recommended
that alternative three be adopted to maintain a standard holiday schedule
and the Council be prepared to augment the overtime accounts of the
affected Departments should salary savings prove insufficient to cover
these costs.
Prepared By: Susan E. McCarthy
CITY HOLIDAYS
SMPOA & FIREFIGHTERS ON
SUPPRESSION UTU
1. New Years Day New Years Day
2. Lincoln's Birthday Washington's Birthday
3. Washington's Birthday Memorial Day
4. Memorial Day Independence Day
5. Independence Day Labor Day
6. Labor Day Thanksgiving Day
7. Admissions Day Christmas Day
8. Columbus Day Easter Sunday
9. Veteran's Day Birthday of Employee
10. Thanksgiving Day Floating Holiday
11. Christmas Day Floating Holiday
ALL OTHERS
New Years Day
Lincoln's Birthday
Washington's Birthday
Memorial Day
Independence Day
Labor Day
Thanksgiving Day
Day after Thanksgiving
Half day Christmas Eve
Half day New Years Eve
Christmas Day
Floating Holiday