San Jose council takes up 3% raises for city workers and renaming Plaza de César Chávez; vote results not yet in written record

SAN JOSE - The San Jose City Council's Oct. 27 agenda included a three-year contract with the Municipal Employees' Federation, AFSCME Local 101, which represents about 2,413 full-time-equivalent workers, a city staff memo says. The city's written record does not yet show the result: as of Oct. 29 the meeting's minutes were still in draft and the item's legislative history listed no vote.

Under the proposed terms, workers would get a 3% raise each year through June 2029, plus a one-time payment of 1% of base pay. The third raise could reach 4% if the city forecasts a surplus of $15 million or more. Each 3% raise adds about $7.4 million to $7.8 million in yearly costs, the memo says.

The council also took up renaming Plaza de César Chávez as Plaza de San José, the top choice in a city survey with more than 10,000 responses. New signs would go up by fall 2027, a staff memo says.

Also on the agenda was a state-required, phased ban on watering decorative grass with drinking water: government land from Jan. 1, 2027, businesses and institutions from 2028, and homeowners association common areas from 2029, under the draft ordinance. Neither vote result is in the written record yet.

Source: amended agenda, MEF staff memo, plaza renaming memo and draft turf ordinance. Meeting video: City Council recording, Oct. 27, 2026