Supervisors Approve New Contracts for Majority of County Employees

Redwood City -San Mateo County supervisors today approved new three-year contracts with the County's largest employee unions.

The new contracts include a 5 percent raise in each of the next two years and a 4 percent increase in 2026. Employees will also receive additional contributions towards health care premiums. These historic increases were a priority for the County to address the continued high cost of living in our County.

"Our residents expect top-quality public service, and we firmly believe we have the best public service workers in the state," said Board President Warren Slocum. "These pay increases will help ensure we can retain and attract a workforce that will continue to serve our community now and into the future. We are truly investing in the people who keep our community running smoothly."

The bargaining units covered include the County's two largest unions, the Service Employees International Union Local 521, as well as the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. These unions combined represent 3,690 regular employees and 1,140 extra-help employees.

Supervisors also approved new resolutionsfor unrepresented managers, attorneys and confidential employees not covered by union contracts. These new resolutions closely mirror the changes made in the new union contracts.

All workers covered by the contracts and resolutions will receive two wellness days, which encourage employees to take time off to focus on their health. All workers will also receive Cesar Chavez Day as a paid holiday beginning in 2025.

Employees covered by the SEIU contract and the resolution with unrepresented managers, attorneys and confidential employees will receive three days of "winter recess" in late December 2024, 2025 and 2026.

The contract with SEIU Local 521 includesa wide range of job classifications, including accountants, library assistants, office specialists, criminal records technicians and elections specialists, among others.

Positions covered by the contract with AFSCMEinclude cardiac sonographers, epidemiologists, park rangers, veterans services officers and children services workers, among others.

The contracts approved by supervisors total approximately $57 million in additional expenditures in the first year of the agreements.

Under all of the agreements, employees would receive an additional 1 percent pay increase in 2026 (to 5 percent) if legislation is signed that ensures the County receives its full Vehicle License Fee Adjustment Amount. This is an ongoing dispute between the County and state officials with tens of millions of dollars in tax revenues at stake annually.

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