Item 8-A

Santa Monica, California

Council Meeting: August 17, 1999

TO: Mayor and City Council

FROM: City Staff

SUBJECT: Recommendation to Introduce for First Reading an Ordinance Amending the Sick Leave Provisions of the Municipal Code to Delete the Restriction on Use of Sick Leave for Work-Related Injuries and to Conform the Amount of Sick Leave Accrual and Usage of Sick Leave to Provisions Negotiated in Memorandums of Understanding and to Federal and State Law

This report recommends that City Council introduce and hold first reading of an ordinance amending the sick leave provisions of the Municipal Code to delete the restriction on the use of sick leave for work-related injuries and to conform the amount of sick leave accrual and usage of sick leave to provisions negotiated in Memorandums of Understanding and to Federal and State law (Family and Medical Leave Act and the California Family Rights Act).

The Meyers-Milias-Brown Act governs labor-management relationships in California local government. Cities, counties, and most special districts are covered by the law which appears in the California Government Code Sections 3500-3510. Under the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act, the City of Santa Monica is required to meet and confer in good faith regarding wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment with representatives of recognized employee organizations. The use and accrual of sick leave are mandatory subjects of bargaining under the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act. As a result, the City has negotiated provisions in Memorandums of Understanding between the City and its various bargaining units which pertain to the use and accrual of sick leave. Some of those provisions do not conform to the Santa Monica Municipal Code provisions regarding sick leave. The proposed ordinance would amend the sick leave provisions of the Municipal Code to delete the restriction on the use of sick leave for work related injuries and to conform the amount of sick leave accrual and usage of sick leave to provisions negotiated in Memorandums of Understanding and to Federal and State law.

The attached ordinance would not result in a budget or financial impact to the City other than that which has already been taken into account with regard to the Memorandums of Understanding which have been adopted by the City Council.

It is recommended that the attached ordinance be introduced for first reading.

Prepared by:

Barbara Greenstein, Deputy City Attorney

Karen Bancroft, Director of Personnel