Palo Alto Managers Agree To Pay Cuts Amid Budget Crisis: Report

PALO ALTO, CA — Amid a budget crisis precipitated by the coronavirus crisis, Palo Alto City Manager Ed Shikada and the city’s non-union managers and professional staffers have agreed to a substantial pay cut.

Shikada has agreed to a 20% pay cut and the city’s managers and professional staffers will see their salaries reduced by 15%, Palo Alto Weekly reports.

The “management and professionals,” which includes middle managers and other staff, make up the equivalent of 231.75 full-time jobs and their combined pay cuts will save the city $5 million, the report said.

The city faces a $38.8 million budget shortfall, the report said.

The announcement of management accepting salary cuts follows meetings in which council members have had contentious debates over budget cuts, the report said, noting police staffing, library hours and recreational program funding are all on the chopping block, according to the report.

The city's "manager and professional staff are leading by example," Shikada told the council, according to Palo Alto Weekly.

Read more at Palo Alto Weekly