Compensation Study

Contract

  • Consultant: Koff & Associates
  • Council approval date: July 19, 2022
  • Work began: August 31, 2022
  • Estimated completion (per March 2023 City progress report): September 2023
  • Actual delivery: February 2024

Approval and start dates: El Cerrito CAP Progress Report, March 2023.pdf, Executive Summary — “The City Council approved a contract with Koff and Associates for a Citywide classification/compensation study on July 19, 2022. Koff and Associates began their work as of August 31, 2022 and the study is slated to be completed in September 2023.”

Methodology Gaps (documented separately, prior research)

  • Does not account for CalPERS Unfunded Actuarial Liability (UAL) anywhere in its total-compensation analysis — only prices normal-cost pension add-ons.
  • Comparator cities (15 total) averaged approximately 71,500 residents versus El Cerrito’s approximately 25,700 — roughly 2.8–2.9 times larger on average.
  • The City Manager position was excluded entirely from the benchmark list.
  • Found base salary 7.9% below market median, but total compensation only 1.9% below median.
  • El Cerrito’s 37.5-hour workweek (for Management & Confidential and SEIU 1021 employees) was not adjusted for in the comparator methodology.

These findings are drawn from prior analysis of the Koff study itself (February 2024) and comparator-city data; page-level citations to the Koff report should be added directly from the report document when available for public citation.

Why Sequencing Matters Here

This study benchmarked El Cerrito’s compensation against other cities’ compensation for the same positions — without any prior, independent analysis of whether those positions’ duties, staffing levels, or organizational structure were appropriately scoped. That structural/duties analysis is exactly what the State Auditor’s recommended sequence called for as Step 1 and Step 2, before any compensation benchmarking (Step 3). See the Sequencing Case Study for the full comparison.