Riverside IT Workers Speak Up for Improved Job Classification System

Around thirty-five Riverside County Information Technology workers gathered at the Board of Supervisors meeting on June 5, urging the Board not to adopt Human Resources’ proposal to reclassify all IT positions until members’ concerns with the plan are addressed.  Their efforts were successful. 

After Catherine Eide-Nelson and Cindy Phelps spoke out on behalf of IT workers, the Board gave workers one week to present their concerns to Riverside County Human Resources Director Ron Komers.

HR’s new proposal creates many concerns for workers:  The new job classification system would not provide an adequate career path; pay ranges are not market competitive; at least 70 members would be harmed by having their pay frozen, and the proposal lacks an appeal process for those unjustly classified.

For over two years, IT workers worked with the county to improve the IT classification system.  But progress came to a halt when HR director Ron Komer stopped working with our union and decided to develop his own proposal. 

“We were cut out of the process even though we have valuable information,” says Catherine Eide Nelson, a supervising business systems analyst who has worked for the County for 20 years.

“We have information to help the county retain and recruit qualified employees and improve services in our county.  The board listened to us and did the right thing in giving us more time to work on this issue.”