Saying it was the wrong time for new costs, Jacksonville’s City Council rejected union contracts Tuesday that would have given most JEA employees pay raises of 1.5 percent to 3 percent.
“I’m not sure I could go to sleep tonight knowing I cut my police officers’ [pay] 3 percent and I’m handing out ... pay raises,” Councilman John Crescimbeni said before a series of votes that turned down five separate labor deals affecting about 1,730 workers.
JEA’s chief executive said he would go back to the unions to renegotiate.
“I’m very disappointed” said CEO Jim Dickenson. “We cut [payroll costs] ... and they seemed to just not recognize that.”
See how much JEA employees earned in the last fiscal year
The contracts would have expired within the year, and the unions had worked without new agreements for two earlier years. Dickenson said he wasn’t sure whether he would try to get a new deal for the same timeframe or negotiate for additional years.
If they had been approved, the agreements would have added $4.3 million in yearly costs to the city-owned water and electric utility, which has about a $2 billion budget.
A number of customers had complained when the legislation was filed with the council last year, but Dickenson told the council the raises would not cause rate hikes. Tuesday, he told the council he expects electric bills to drop within the year, if fuel prices continue current trends.
He said JEA had eliminated performance incentives starting in 2008, effectively lowering typical workers pay 5 percent well before police and fire unions accepted concessions. He said other utilities have raised pay, and he is losing employees who can get better wages elsewhere.
But council members were in no mood for Dickenson’s arguments, with only five out of 18 supporting the contracts.
“I do believe there’s an appropriate time to consider raises, but I believe now is not the appropriate time,” said Councilman Clay Yarborough.
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