Title
Human Resources Department recommending the Board:
1) Adopt and authorize the Chair to sign Resolution 140-2026 approving the negotiated Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the County of El Dorado Operating Engineers Local No. 3, representing the Corrections Bargaining Unit;
2) Authorize the Chair to sign said MOU; and
3) Direct the Human Resources Department and the Auditor-Controller's Office to administer and implement the MOU provisions.
FUNDING: General Fund.
Body
DISCUSSION / BACKGROUND
The term of the current MOU between the County of El Dorado and Operating Engineers Local No. 3 AFL-CIO, representing the Corrections Bargaining Unit (Union), ended on June 30, 2026.
Pursuant to the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act (Government Code sections 3500 et seq.), representatives of the Union and the County have met and conferred in good faith regarding wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment of employees in the bargaining unit. The County and Union jointly prepared a successor MOU, for the term of July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2028, reflecting agreed upon revisions to certain terms and conditions. Subject to the provisions in the MOU, those revised terms and conditions with a County cost impact are summarized below, along with the estimated annual cost.
1. Effective the first full pay period following Board adoption of the July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2028 MOU, or the first full pay period in July 2026, whichever occurs later, the County will increase total compensation for benchmark classifications and internally tied non-benchmark classifications to approximately +/- 8% of the total compensation median of the County’s February 2026 comparable agency compensation survey. To achieve this, County will increase base wages by 11.26%.
2. Effective the first full pay period following Board adoption of this successor MOU, or the first full pay period in July 2027, whichever occurs later, the County will increase base wages by 3.0%.
3. Modification of existing language pertaining to geographic differential for county-wide consistency. Expand geographic residential boundary to approximately 25 miles from Tahoe work location based on zip codes.
Other Terms and Conditions which are recommended for update, and which have little or unknown direct cost impact include, but are not limited to:
• Modification of existing language pertaining to sick leave for consistency with State leave law (e.g., remove provisions for “excessive” leave).
• Modification of existing language pertaining to acting pay assignments to clarify the applicability of this MOU.
• Added language to incorporate side letter on the Canine Officer Program dated July 29, 2025.
• Modification of existing language pertaining to injury and illness leave time to add eligibility of use of County paid time for Workers’ Compensation injury/illness follow-up doctor’s appointments.
• Added provision pertaining to informing the Union no later than April 1, 2027, of a new benefit in which the County seeks to create an employee-funded retiree medical pre-funding mechanism.
• Modification of existing language pertaining to Drug Free Workplace to remove language that no longer applies as county-wide policy was adopted by the Board of Supervisors in March 2025.
• Added provision pertaining to vacation seniority selection.
• Modification of existing language pertaining to catastrophic leave to clarify administrative process and eligibility for family, consistent with other units.
• Modification of existing language pertaining to probationary periods to clarify when they are/are not required for county-wide consistency, including within classification series. Converted “months” to equivalent “pay periods” for consistent reference.
Additional “house-keeping” language changes are included in the recommended MOU.
This MOU cancels all other previous agreements and shall otherwise supersede any policies, practices, or ordinance provisions with which it may be in conflict. The MOU shall become of full force and effect upon approval and adoption by the Board of Supervisors and shall remain in effect through June 30, 2028. Nothing contained in the MOU shall be applied on a retroactive basis unless specifically stated.
ALTERNATIVES
The County negotiated this MOU in good faith with the Union under authority and direction of the Board, thus there are no recommended alternatives.
PRIOR BOARD ACTION
10/17/2023 Legistar file 23-1861: Board adopted the most recent MOU for this bargaining unit.
OTHER DEPARTMENT / AGENCY INVOLVEMENT
Operating Engineers Local No. 3
CAO RECOMMENDATION
Approve as recommended.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
The approximate annual cost of the initial compensation increase and the change to geographic differential is $1,558,118 with the cost for the remainder of Fiscal Year (FY) 2026-27 totaling $1,258,480, affecting only the Sheriff’s Office. It is anticipated that the Sheriff’s Office will be able to cover the increased costs with salary savings. The additional increased costs for increases implemented in Fiscal Year 2027-28 will be approximately $441,664.
CLERK OF THE BOARD FOLLOW UP ACTIONS
1) The Clerk will obtain the signature of the Chair on the Resolutions;
2) Human Resources will provide the Clerk with three original MOUs for the Chair to sign upon ratification by the Union; and
3) The Clerk will return one copy of each executed resolution and two original MOUs to Lauren Montalvo in Human Resources once fully executed by the Chair, and retain one fully executed MOU for the Board.
STRATEGIC PLAN COMPONENT
Workforce Excellence
Priority: Enhance Employee Retention
Action Item: Attract and retain the best employees by providing competitive compensation, training, and advancement opportunities, and creating a positive and thriving culture.
CONTACT
Joseph Carruesco, Director of Human Resources