Civilian Employees Speak on 

Pay Raises, Health benefits and Charter Changes!

Council email addresses

Council Members Contact Info

Mayor Laura Miller
City of Dallas
1500 Marilla Street, Room 5EN
Dallas, Texas 75201-6390
Phone: (214) 670-4054
Fax: (214) 670-0646

1500 Marilla St ,  Rm 5       Dallas , Texas 75201

 

Dr. Elba García - Dist 1 Ph: (214) 670-4052  Fax: (214) 670-3409 elba.garcia@dallascityhall.com

Pauline MedranoDist 2  Ph: (214) 670-4048  Fax: (214) 670-5117 pauline.medrano@dallascityhall.com

David Neumann Dist 3 Ph: (214) 670-0776  Fax: (214) 670-1833  david.neumann@dallascityhall.com

Dwaine CarawayDist 4 Ph: (214) 670-0781  Fax: (214) 670-3409 dwaine.caraway@dallascityhall.com

Vonciel Hill - Dist 5 Ph: (214) 670-0777  Fax: (214) 670-5117 vonciel.hill@dallascityhall.com

Steve Salazar- Dist 6  Ph: (214) 670-4199  Fax: (214) 670-5115 steven.salazar@dallascityhall.com

Carolyn Davis - Dist 7 Ph: (214) 670-4689  Fax: (214) 670-5115 carolyn.davis@dallascityhall.com

Tennell Atkins - Dist 8 Ph: (214) 670-4066 Fax:(214) 670-5115 tennell.atkins@dallascityhall.com

Sheffield KadaneDist 9 Ph: (214) 670-4069  Fax: (214) 670-5115 sheffield.kadane@dallascityhall.com

Jerry Allen - Dist 10  Ph: (214) 670-4068 Fax: (214) 670-5115 jerry.allen@dallascityhall.com

Linda Koop - Dist 11 Ph: (214) 670-7817  Fax:(214)670-5117 debra.brown@dallascityhall.com

Ron Natinksky  Dist 12  Ph: (214) 670-4067 Fax: (214) 670-5117  ron.natinsky@dallascityhall.com

M. Rasansky - Dist 13 Ph: (214) 670-3816 Fax: (214) 670-5117 mitchell.rasansky@dallascityhall.com

Angela Hunt - Dist 14 Ph: (214) 670-5415  Fax: (214) 670-5117  angela.hunt@dallascityhall.com

The number one thing you as an employee can do is be heard! Write letters to the city council, you do not have to be a resident of Dallas to write the city council. After all you work for them, you also have a right to communicate with them. Also encourage your friends and relatives to write also. If you need ideas, guidelines and addresses to get you started look here. If you have any samples of letters you have sent or are going to send to help other employees, Please email them to us to be posted (without your name of course). You will find sample letters at the bottom of the page. 

There are several things to remember when writing letters. As a general rule a letter sent via regular US MAIL carries more weight that an email or phone call. You can do those too, but the important thing is to get the letters out there! 

Sample Letters

Performance Appraisal Affecting Future Prospects

Ms. Suhm,

I am writing to tell you how damaging I have found the new merit/appraisal system. Not only have the funds allotted to the merit appraisal system been completely inadequate to cover the costs increasing shifted to me from the city, but it is also going to harm my future ability to get a better job.  

I am not even sure why we are using this system. Apparently one of the models for the effective use of forced ranking was the Enron Corporation. Why is the city going down that path? 

This system has a real risk of discriminating against older workers, (like me) especially when they are close to retirement age. The thinking is, we don’t need the score, the department needs to give it to someone else. So not only do we not have the same chance at a decent raise as our co-workers, but we are also saddled with a so-so review that we don’t want to show when we are looking for new jobs.  

This system will leave the city vulnerable to discrimination charges from affected protected groups. You don’t trust your managers enough to let them do their own ranking, yet you are relying on them to enact the current system in a way that protects the city from massive litigation? Do you see a big problem here? I do.  

This system is a prop for bad management. After all, if we had good managers, they wouldn’t have to be forced into this system to achieve goals. They would instead evaluate, coach and correct their employees year-round instead of just at evaluation time.  

One last thought, if my department lets go (or drives away) an under-performing employee… all that means is that a good performing employee will have to slip into that slot next time, even if they maintain their current level of performance.

Name

Copy to Linda Koop

 

 

Ms. Suhm,     

I am upset with the current appraisal system. I think it is subjective and depends entirely on a supervisor’s opinion of my work. Often the departments do not follow the guidelines that apply to them, yet rigorously apply the rating standard to the employees. How can this be?  

Last year my department flouted the rules applying to them, and took advantage of their failure by telling me that since no goals were assigned to me by any of my four different supervisors in my five different jobs, I could not be rated any higher than average. To add insult to injury, the much vaunted merit appeal process only permitted me to appeal to the people signing off on this decision in the first place.  

We all understand that the changes to the merit system have been first and foremost to save money. We understand. We get the picture. Wrapping the merit process in the flag of employee accountability, inspired. However, I do have to wonder at how much accountability you are allowing. You have legions of supervisors who now have no more say in how their employees are rated than their stapler has. You have many more rank and file employees with no control of their future, no chance at personal accountability. Yet we continue to meet the bell curve, toss some big rocks, and utter the buzz words of the year and pretend ‘it’s all good’.  

Well, except perhaps for one tiny detail. That being of course that fact that good employees are getting mediocre reviews to justify the money the city wants to spend, and that those reviews are going to haunt their employment and promotion prospects for years afterwards. What is going to happen at interviews when we are asked to provide past reviews?  

I certainly would not want to hire anyone showing me reviews I got last year. Granted, I could try explaining that Dallas has a ton of money problems and this was one of their answers to balancing their budget. In addition to sounding a bit whiney, I am not sure someone unfamiliar with Dallas policies and politics would believe that any organization with a functioning Human Resource department would actually do this to their employees.  

Since we seem to be stuck with this flawed process for a while, why don’t you divorce the rating amount from the review score? Actually train the supervisors how to do reviews in such a way that problem employees can be coached into becoming better employees or let go. Quit having managers who don’t know the employees re-grade their reviews at a whim. Have the rating scores submitted and then divide the money by the ratings so that you keep to your budget. Not perhaps the best solution, but it would allow the supervisors and employees to regain their accountability.  

If you have read the Performance Appraisal Survey comments you are well aware of how much the employees answering the survey despise the current review system. While understanding that the money will not change, could you please make it less flawed in the future?   

Thank You,

 Name

CC Copy to Angela Hunt 
Ms. Suhm,

The current City of Dallas performance appraisal system is loosely based on the Grote Approach which, recognizing inevitable subjectivity, focuses on objective measures while allowing for necessary but minimized subjectivity. This is system used correctly would be in compliance with the desire of the citizens of Dallas who want the most city services for their tax dollars. The way it’s currently applied, however, is as subjective as possible which opens the system to inefficacy as well as cronyism and bigotry.

We all realize that changes are being made at the upper levels and we’re waiting for those changes to trickle down to our levels but damage has been done of which I request reconsideration. The quality of my performance has been rated as high throughout my life. Only in recently have I been marked from Superior to Needs Improvement. I realize the City is working with a tight budget and so I’m not requesting an increase in pay but that my past and future performance ratings marked correctly.
 
Thanks,

Namewithheld from this website.

CC Councilwoman Koop

 

Ms. Suhm,

I am upset with the current appraisal system. I think it is subjective and depends entirely on a supervisor’s opinion of my work. Worse, I am required to document everything to try to justify a better rating; while they can just state that this is where they think you rated. They can dismiss everything I present without any documentation as long as I receive an at least an average rating. Why? How unfair is that?  

I am also uneasy about these reviews because they will affect my future job prospects. How would you like to go to a job interview with a past review that is not really based on your performance, but rather on how much money your department had that year. Not only am I affected by an unfair review this year, but I will continue to be affected for years to come. 

Thank You, 

(Don't for get to also send a copy also to other Council Members)

Cost of Living Adjustment - Sample 1

Dear ????

The uniformed personnel of the Police and Fire Departments received 5% raise each year for the last 3 years for a total of 15% increase in salary.  The Civilian workers have received no raise of any kind during that time period. 
 
Costs have increased sharply during that time in housing, gasoline, food and all type of services.  Health Benefit costs have been sharply shifted to the employees making it impossible for some employees to have any coverage for their families.  Each year civilian workers have less and less take home pay.
 
The two small merit raises this year will not begin to pay the increased health benefit burden or the approximately 3% increase civilian workers will have to pay into the pension fund beginning October 1 2005. 
 
Consequently, I would like to request that a cost of living adjustment of 5% be given to all civilian workers starting this October.

Thank You,

Cost of Living Adjustment - Sample 1

Dear ???

As I understand it, the City Manager has included only merit raises, for the civilian employees and no cost of living raises in the 2005/2006 budget.  As you are aware, in the budget of 2004/2005, a 2% cost of living (effective January 2005, not October 2004, ¾ of the budget year), and a 0 to 4% merit (effective June 2005, ½ the budget year), was the first raise civilian employees have received since the budget year 2000/2001) With the reduction in the service incentive pay, employees hired before 2002 saw their pay reduced, civilian have been taking home 1999 wages. Every employee is facing increase expenditures in just about every part of their life, not just those employees who receive merit raises.
 
Increased fuel cost has impacted the cost of food, clothing, utilities and transportation  paid by all employees, not just the employees who receive merit raises.  All the employees have seen a 300% plus increases in health coverage, the premiums, deductibles, and prescriptions, not just the employees who receive merit raises. 
 
As Mr. Cook pointed out, the fuel cost alone has had a major impact on the budget this year.  If there is a major impact on the city budget due to cost of fuel and the city has been increasing fees and taxes. All employees have budgets being impacted by fuel cost increase, not just the few who would receive merit increases. 
 
I personally feel that a cost of living raise should be given to all the employees and merit raises to those who have earned them, just as the uniformed employees will receive a cost of living and step raises.  However if you are set on allowing only one raise for the civilian employees, please give all the employees a good cost of living. 

Thank You,

Cost of Living Adjustment - Sample 3

Dear ????

 Concerning the 'performance reviews' for civilian employees, these are not working. As for the no Cost Of Living Adjustment/Merit Only idea in this years budget.... this was a bazaar idea. Badly Bazaar.

We know that, 'You and I are here to serve the citizens of Dallas', but there is a big difference between service and servitude. Please direct the city manager include a cost of living adjustment in the 2006 budget rather a capped merit increase. The capped merit only lowered moral even more this year. Oh, and it would be good, if we received it before the pension increase goes into effect, not months afterwards. Please, the civilian employees are in desperate need of some kind of assistance to cover their ever increasing bills.

 Thank You,

Health Care - Sample 1

Dear ????

Over the past several years health care benefits for Dallas City Employees have been in rapid decline. A committee was appointed, with representatives from all city departments, to communicate health care changes and give input for future plans. This committee was charged with recommending changes within the framework of the current funding levels. It is time to stop thinking about current procedures and start thinking about the right thing to do!
 
While preparing the 2004 budget Mr. Benavides briefed the Council that the proposed  health care plan would put Dallas City Employees in the 10th percentile. That means 90% of the comparison groups had better health care coverage than your city employees, and coverage has continued to deteriorate. As recently as Dec. 8th this council voted once again to cut health care coverage.
 
As an employer this city should be interested in offering benefits that are comparable to those offered by other Texas cities. According to your own Human Resources department research; the amount of employee health care subsidized by Dallas is approximately half what is subsidized by Austin and Fort Worth and less than half of what is paid by Plano or Houston.
 
 City management has told us “it is the trend to discontinue coverage for spouses of employees”. While Dallas subsidizes 0% of spouses health care; Plano subsidizes 89%, Houston 65%, Garland 65% and San Antonio 85%. Austin, Ft. Worth, San Antonio, Houston, Carrolton, Garland, Plano, Mesquite in every comparison Dallas City Employees pay more for family health care coverage, in one instance 7 ½  times what the other city employees pay. Many of these city employees are paying less for better coverage than what is offered to your employees. It would appear that Dallas is not following the trend we are taking the lead on eliminating health care coverage for employees and their families.
 
The employees of this city have endured years of little or no pay raises and what raises were given were offset by elimination of SIP and dramatic increases in Health care costs. Staffing cuts have resulted in employees doing more work for less compensation. If this city wants to recruit, hire and retain the highest quality employees we must offer a competitive compensation package. If we are going to find a solution it is imperative that we work together exploring our options.

As the budget finalizes we hope you will realize the importance of this issue. The trend with employee health care must be reversed if we are to attract and retain skilled employees. 

Thank You,

 

Charter Change Sample Letter - Check Back Tomorrow.

 

General Issues - SAMPLE 1

July 24, 2005
 
Mayor (who ever)
1500 Marilla, 5EN
Dallas, Texas 75201
 
Dear   XXX :
 
I am a city employee with over _____ years of loyal service.  I am very concerned about the upcoming council meeting on ??date, specifically, issue...  for all civilian employees.
 
I urge you to vote against this item, as this will affect your most loyal employees.  As an elected official, you are here for a short period.  The decisions you make regarding our pay will have no affect on you or your families, but will have long term affect on our families and on us.
 
Recently, the civilian employees are knocked down at every turn of the road.  If this trend continues, the loyalty civilian employees feel for the city of Dallas will be gone.
 
Sincerely,
 

General Issues - SAMPLE 2 
July 31, 2005 
 
Mitchell Rasansky, Council member (or whoever)
1500 Marilla 5FN
Dallas, TX 75201 
 
Re: ISSUE 
As a City employee with more than xxx years of loyal service, I am very concerned about Issue??. Please consider the long-term effects of these proposals on the civilian employees, their families, and the City organization as a whole. As you well know, the decisions you make in the next few weeks will have a long lasting effect on the City, the employees and the citizens we serve. 
??Issue could cause use to continue to loose employees. We have lost many experienced employees to early retirement, while newer employees are seeking other employment because City wages will be below the area market. With the hiring freeze in place, we cannot replace those employees. Service efficiency will continue to decline as more civilian employees leave the City. 
I am proud of my career and I do not want to see the City irreparably harmed by ????Issue , 
I urge you to vote ??infavor/against the ??Issue 
Thank you, 

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