BREA : Committee to Study City Pay Structure

Following a controversial 1991 vote to raise the salaries of the city’s managerial employees, the City Council has begun a study of the wage structure.

A nine-member committee consisting of residents and employees of the city and local businesses will work with consultants Shannon & Associates for the next three months to study the city’s pay and benefits.

“We feel that we should periodically review the compensation program,” said Councilman Glenn G. Parker. “We don’t think anything is broken; we just want to know if there is an area for improvement or a system that can be even better.”

One idea that will be explored is linking pay to performance for teams of employees.

“I’m pleased to hear a public agency considering that kind of thing,” said panel member Michael Blomgren, a personnel manager for Sundstrand, a Fortune 500 aerospace company with offices in Brea. “We’ve utilized pay for performance for the 20 years I’ve been involved in human resources. I think it is an excellent way to work compensations.”

The city’s employee associations have been invited to participate in the review.

John Adams, labor relations consultant to the 125-member Brea City Employees Assn. and the 40-member Administrative and Professional Employees Assn., said he believes the review is good management.

Any changes in salary structure would take effect in the 1993-1994 fiscal year, Parker said.

“We didn’t want a rush job,” he said. “We want something we can live with for a long time.”