By Darren DaRonco | Arizona Daily Star
Tucson City Manager Richard Miranda is proposing a 55-cent-an-hour across-the-board pay raise for city employees as part of his recommended $1.269 billion budget for next year.
Human Resources Director Lani Simmons said the increases are important because many city employees are stuck at the low end of their pay scale since the city stopped giving merit and step increases over the past several years.
The cost of raises would depend on when they take effect. A July 1 date – the start of the new fiscal year – means a $5.1 million cost, while a Jan. 1 implementation would cost $2.3 million. Miranda’s recommended budget, delivered to the City Council on Tuesday, includes about $4.2 million in available funds that could go toward raises.
Council members’ reactions were mixed.
