Labor agreement gives raises to Merced County court employees

Nearly 100 Merced Superior Court employees will receive a 2 percent raise this month, union leaders said this week.

David Partida, director of organizing for the Merced County Public Employees Union Local 1, said the agreement affects 83 clerical employees, such as processing clerks and court reporters. In addition to the salary increase, the employees will get a one-time payment of $750.

Partida, who’s involved with labor negotiations in seven other counties, said the raises are encouraging, especially because most other court contracts are status quo or involve concessions and furloughs.

“What we were able to accomplish in the courts in Merced is outstanding,” Partida said. “These folks haven’t gotten raises in at least seven years.”

A longtime court employee said the 2 percent raise was an unexpected but pleasant surprise. Most court employees didn’t think they would get a raise this year.

“I truly thought they would come back and say they didn’t have the money,” said Susan Moorehead, a senior court processing clerk. “It was actually more than I was expecting and the majority of the membership was quite pleased with it.”

Moorehead, who’s worked at the court for 15 years, is also the union president. She plans to use the extra money toward everyday expenses, such as groceries and utilities.

Partida also negotiated the contract for 308 Merced County clerical employees outside the courts, but that agreement involved no wage increases. It was approved by the Board of Supervisors at a board meeting earlier this month.

Partida said he’s unhappy with the outcome of that contract, which has been in negotiation since March.

“The employees haven’t seen a raise in years and health care costs are going up,” he said. “The cost of living is going up, and our members are struggling to pay more for services. The morale is very low with Merced County employees, not just in our union. ”

The county proposed furloughs, but Partida said the union fought back and won that battle. On the other hand, the clerical employees wanted to be compensated for “biliterate services” – translation of legal documents to other languages – as other Merced County employees currently are, but Partida said the county didn’t budge on the issue.

The county also denied the union’s request for five paid days off in the year. However, county supervisors later granted two paid holidays to all county employees, on Dec. 26 and Jan. 2.

Merced County officials have finished bargaining with all unions for the year, said Human Resources Director Marci Barrera. Of the 11 employee unions engaged in negotiations, one group couldn’t reach an agreement. It was the county’s largest union – the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 2703.

Barrera said the terms that didn’t expire from the previous AFSCME contract will carry over. Labor negotiations will begin again in March for next year.

One issue at the center of AFSCME’s labor talks was an annual bonus some employees had received for 15 years. The decision not to renew the “loyalty bonus” – which provided $750 to employees who’ve worked for the county 10 years or more – was described by workers as a “slap in the face.”

While it’s unclear what next year’s fiscal budget will look like, Barrera said the county is ready to revisit the issues in the next round of negotiations. “We’re ready to get back to the table and talk about whatever issues are current and relevant,” she said.

This story was originally published January 29, 2015 at 10:58 PM with the headline "Labor agreement gives raises to Merced County court employees."