To: Honorable Mayor and Members of City Council
From: Heather Ruiz, Human Resources Director
Prepared By: Caitlin Saldanha, Management Analyst II
TITLE:
Title
Classification Plan and Salary for Senior Traffic Engineer in the Public Works Department
LABEL
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommendation
Adopt a resolution amending the City Classification Plan by adopting the revised classification specification and salary range for Senior Traffic Engineer in the Public Works Department.
Body
DISCUSSION:
The City Council was provided the opportunity to approve the allocated funding for one Senior Traffic Engineer as part of the FY 2023/24 and FY 2024/25 Budget on June 20, 2023. The position of Senior Traffic Engineer was previously approved during the adoption of the Fiscal Year 2023/24 and Fiscal Year 2024/25 Budget via Resolutions R2023-077 and R2023-078 and is included in the current Budget Staffing Plan.
The classification for Senior Traffic Engineer is a part of the City’s Classification Plan, but the classification has not been utilized for many years. Therefore, additional research was needed to ensure the classification and job duties of Senior Traffic Engineer would meet the current needs of the Public Works Department. Human Resources reviewed the classification with support from department leadership and determined that changes to salary and classification were both necessary to keep the description up to date.
The Human Resources department interviewed staff in the Public Works Department to determine recommendations that would align with their operational need. The discussions indicated that the classification is still mostly relevant to the needs of the department, but there is a desire to add in additional traffic duties and specific language related to bicycle and pedestrian safety, policy recommendations, coordination with Caltrans, and more. These modifications will ensure that any future incumbents are aware of expectations in their role. Additionally, the Human Resources team recommended several formatting changes to align with the current template adopted by the Civil Service Commission.
To align the Senior Traffic Engineer with internal salary equity based on the scope of the role and duties and to ensure competitiveness in the external market, it is recommended to create a top step of $182,076.60 for this classification. Human Resources recommended this range as a part of the budget process as it creates a roughly 10% differential above the Senior Civil Engineer and below the Deputy Public Works Director positions. This differential will allow for growth between the classifications and ensure attractiveness in the market for recruitment and retention purposes.
The affected bargaining unit, Administrative, Managerial, and Professional Employees (AMP), was given an opportunity to review, and agreed on the recommendations.
The new classification and salary range for Senior Traffic Engineer was heard by the Civil Service Commission at their special meeting on October 23, 2023, and the Commission recommended to Council for approval.
FINANCIAL IMPACTS:
No additional funding is required beyond that already allocated and approved in the City budget. The position of Senior Traffic Engineer was previously approved on June 20, 2023 during the adoption of the Fiscal Year 2023/24 and Fiscal Year 2024/25 Budget via Resolutions R2023-077 and R2023-078.
CEQA:
The Human Resources Director has determined that the Recommended Action described in this Agenda Report is not subject to CEQA, pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15060(c).
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
ATCH 1 - Resolution
EX A - Classification Specification for Senior Traffic Engineer
NOTIFICATION:
Department Managers and Bargaining Groups