County Boards of Supervisors and their human resource managers are responsible for the wages and benefits of their employees and other county personnel. In cases of non-management employees, wages, benefits, and terms of employment are collectively bargained with labor organizations. The Meyers-Milias-Brown Act specifies the parameters and conditions of the collective bargaining process in order to promote a dialogue and labor contract agreement between management and the organized workforce.
One of the more significant employee costs involves compensating those who are injured on the job. Current law specifies the terms and levels of workers’ compensation benefits to injured employees. Reforms were enacted to the workers’ compensation system in 2004 and 2012 to further reduce premiums, minimize costs, manage claims, and ensure that injured workers are properly compensated and are able to return-to-work in a speedy manner. RCRC supported those reforms and continues to work to ensure the integrity of those reforms is maintained.
Members of a public pension system (retirees, vested employees, active employees) are guaranteed a retirement payment based on their years of service, compensation, and a multiplying formula. To fund this guaranteed amount, the employee and employer contributions are pooled and invested. Depending upon the rate of return for those investments, the employer is obligated to meet the cost. Most RCRC member counties contract with the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS), which administers a defined benefit retirement program. The exceptions to this include Imperial, Mendocino, Merced, and Tulare Counties, which operate their public retirement systems under the County Employees Retirement Law 1937.
Staff: Sarah Dukett