All City of St. Louis civil service employees will be guaranteed a $15 per hour minimum wage, effective mid-February, as per Executive Order #65, which was signed by Mayor Lyda Krewson on Friday, January 17.
The current federal minimum wage is $7.25, and the current minimum wage in Missouri is $8.60. St. Louis Treasurer Tishaura O. Jones raised the minimum wage for staff in her city office last year.
Krewson also will ask the Civil Service Commission and Board of Aldermen to approve a one-time lump sum pay increase of $1,000 and an increase from 1.5 percent to 3 percent in the annual merit increase available on the civilian employee’s anniversary date for the next two fiscal years, beginning in June, as recommended to the Civil Service Commission by the director of Personnel.
In a statement, Krewson said she is trying to address chronic understaffing across all city departments and to better attract and retain talented, hard-working, skilled employees.
“From tree trimmers, to grass cutters, to accountants, to police officers, to dispatchers, you name it, we need more of them,” Krewson stated. “Constantly having positions go unfilled is hurting our ability to provide good services to our residents. More competitive pay is the right thing to do and will boost morale, reduce turnover, and help fill these open positions.”
Police officers and firefighters received a $6,000 raise in 2018. The director of Personnel is currently in negotiations with the labor representatives and expect to announce a new compensation package in the not too distant future, the release stated.
“Due to tight budget constraints over the last 10 years, civil service civilian City employees have not received the raises they deserve,” Krewson stated. “There were even furloughs and no raises for several years.”
To apply for city jobs, visit https://www.stlouis-mo.gov/jobs/.
