Part-time city employees get a raise

--Kenneth Ma

Nearly 450 part-time city employees will be getting larger paychecks

following a recent City Council decision to increase their hourly wages.

The council last week voted unanimously to approve an increase that

ranges from 5.5% to 26.5%, at an annual cost to the city of $300,000.

Councilman Dave Sullivan said the increase is needed to keep these

employees in a competitive labor market. The increase of the state

minimum wage to $5.75 an hour and a low-unemployment rate are also

factors, states a city report.

Some city jobs that will be affected include aquatic coordinators, legal

interns, maintenance workers, pool lifeguards, police cadets, parking

attendants, gallery aides and swim instructors.

A gallery aide that used to make from $8.92 to $11.06 an hour, will now

make $9.46 to $11.72 an hour. The hourly wage range for a swim instructor

will increase from $7.25 to $8.97 an hour to between $9.46 and $11.72 an

hour.

The increases are based on comparisons with similar public positions in

other Orange County cities.