Special Salary Adjustment (SSA) Application Process – Deadline Approaching!
MEA’s current four-year labor contract includes across-the-board flex and salary increases that apply to all MEA-represented job classifications. In addition, a number of previously approved classification-specific “Special Salary Adjustments” (SSAs) were included to become effective on July 1, 2018.
MEA’s contract includes a process whereby additional SSAs that are recommended by the City’s Civil Service Commission in FY 2017 or 2018 can also be considered for implementation effective July 1, 2018. This year’s Civil Service Commission process for evaluating those requests is upon us, and MEA is now soliciting requests from members who wish to be involved on behalf of their entire job classification.
The criteria for SSAs is described in the City Charter, which provides that the Civil Service Commission shall issue a report each year “identifying classifications which merit special salary consideration because of recruitment and retention problems, changes in duties or responsibilities, or other special factors that the Commission deems appropriate.” For more detailed information about the factors that the Commission considers in this process, please see the attached special salary adjustment request form.
The Charter also provides that only labor organizations or departments may bring forward requests for SSAs, new classes and title changes to the Civil Service Commission. Individual employee submissions to the Civil Service Commission are not allowed – employees must work through their labor organization on behalf of their entire classification.
If you believe that your classification has a meritorious case to be made to the Commission, here are your next steps:
- Review the Salary Proposal Request Form and the detailed explanation (in the upper right) of what needs to be included in each request. Also, see the attached Salary Review Schedule from the Civil Service Commission to learn more about the process.
- Reach out to colleagues in your classification and form a team to help with the work that is involved. As the subject matter experts regarding your job, the efforts of you and your colleagues will make the difference between success and failure in this process.
- Compile the needed information, complete the SSA Request Form, and return it to MEA on or before Friday, June 16, 2017. Completed request packages should be emailed to Cathleen Higgins at chiggins@sdmea.org. You can also call Cathleen at 619-264-6632 x117 if you have any questions or need more information about the process. If you need more time to return the request package to MEA, we might be able to accommodate that as well, but unfortunately we are at the mercy of the very tight timeline just announced this week by the Civil Service Commission.
- MEA will review any SSA request packages received by June 16 and assign staff to work with each group in advance of MEA’s submission to the Civil Service Commission in late July. MEA will provide substantial assistance and guidance to each employee group, but the responsibility to take the lead in doing research and gathering information specific to your classification is yours.
Please review the attached materials to consider moving forward with this process. Contact Cathleen Higgins at MEA for assistance or for more information. We look forward to working with you!
Civil Service Commission Salary Review Schedule
CSC Memo
Request Form
Salary Proposal Request Form