Escondido: Salaries of Union Members will Regress to 2001 Levels

With the cuts, the salaries of union members will regress to 2001 levels, and their benefits will revert to what they had in 1994, union president Russ Lane said.“No one is happy about this,” he said. “We were backed into a corner.”

ESCONDIDO – A last-minute decision by Escondido's largest non-uniformed labor union to accept a pay cut helped avert 31 layoffs when the City Council approved wide-ranging budget cuts Wednesday.

But the council was unable to save much-needed services when it voted 3-2 to drastically shorten library hours, leave 12 police officers' position unfilled and not equip Fire Station 6 on Del Dios Road with a firetruck.

The council majority also voted to close City Hall every Friday, cut the salaries of 236 City Hall employees by 5 percent, and eliminate the city's contributions to employee 401(k)s and automatic pay increases.


The Escondido City Employees Association