Mayor Gives Mgrs. Two 4% Raises To Match DC 37 Hikes

WILLIAM C. THOMPSON Jr.: Calls raises 'disgraceful.'

The Bloomberg administration granted two retroactive 4-percent raises for almost 6,700 managerial and non-unionized workers July 10, a move branded as "disgraceful" by City Comptroller and mayoral candidate William C. Thompson Jr.

The salary increases were previously withheld because of the state of the city's economy, but were nonetheless included in the Fiscal Year 2009 and 2010 budgets at a total cost of $69 million.

Subordinates Were Making More

Because unionized workers had already received negotiated raises at those levels, salary compression has occurred to the point that a promotion to a non-unionized managerial position would require a significant pay cut in some city agencies, leaving many positions unfilled.

"With the City Council having adopted a balanced budget for FY 2010 and the City's finances becoming relatively more stable over the last few months, the Mayor today remedied these imbalances and authorized the same increases that District Council 37 received for the 6,692 managers and unrepresented employees," said mayoral spokesman Jason Post in an e-mail.

LINDA BARNES: 'Glad long wait's finally over.'

The raises will be retroactive to March 3, 2008 and the same date in 2009. Sixty-five percent of the workers getting raises are managers, with 35 percent comprising other nonunionized employees.

"Based on the number of calls that I received late Friday evening from the members, they're quite relieved that this is finally over," said Managerial Employees Association Executive Director Linda Barnes, whose organization advocates for managers but does not have bargaining rights.

'A Tremendous Relief'

"The raises are welcome based on the economic stress that the members have been experiencing," she said. "It's a tremendous relief. We are grateful to the Mayor and Deputy Mayor [Ed] Skyler, who has been extremely instrumental in working to get these raises approved. At one time hope seemed somewhat dim that it could be done."

Ms. Barnes, who worked with MEA President Stephen M. Ferrer to lobby for the raises, said that her members were mostly asking whether the raises would be retroactive, adding that they had suffered economic stress. "Yes, we're managers, but we're people too," she said.

The raises so far do not apply to elected officials, the Department of Education, the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and the Health and Hospitals Corporation, largebudget agencies that have worked to keep administrative costs low.

"It's not fair that the DOE aren't getting raises; those managers work as hard as employees in any other agencies," said Mr. Ferrer in a phone interview. "I'm a little troubled by it, but. . . we're sure that the Mayor will work something out."

Thompson: 'Disgraceful, Offensive'

Mr. Thompson slammed the raises as "out of touch" in an interview with the Daily News, saying, "I think it's disgraceful. I think it's offensive. And I think it's the wrong thing to do—but it also shows how Mayor Bloomberg doesn't understand what's happening in this city."

At a press conference, Mr. Bloomberg responded, "most of these people. . . are middle-class people. They make from $45,000 on up but, you know, they're just in the middle price range of city workers and they have to get raises at the same time."

He added that the raises were something that had been mandated for decades to all non-union employees. "I didn't give them the raises the last time simply because the economy was so unknown. . . and we didn't have the sales-tax legislation passed. Now that it's passed, I feel a little more comfortable about our ability to pay."