The salary, conditions and benefits of employment of the various classifications of nurses required to possess a registered nurse license issued by the State of California as provided for in this section as compensation shall be determined and fixed annually as follows:
(a) On or before May 1, 1982, and each year thereafter, the civil service commission shall certify to the Board of Supervisors for the acute care staff nurse classification the highest prevailing salary schedule in effect on April 15 of that year, and salary adjustments, if any, to be effective during the City and County's next succeeding fiscal year, granted by collective bargaining agreement to comparable registered nurse employees in public and private employment in the counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Mateo, San Francisco and Santa Clara. Rates of pay for other registered nurse classifications shall reflect not less than the same relationships to the benchmark registered nurse classification that those classifications had in fiscal year 1980-1981 to the then benchmark classification.
(b) The Board of Supervisors shall on or before June 1, 1982, and each year thereafter, fix a salary schedule for each classification which shall not be in excess of the schedules certified by the civil service commission, for each such classification, except as provided in Subsection (f) below, and provided, further, that no employee's basic rate of pay shall be reduced to conform to the highest prevailing salary schedule except as provided for in Section 8.406;
(c) The rates of pay fixed for each classification shall become effective at the beginning of the next succeeding fiscal year;
(d) The terms "salary schedule" and "salary schedules" wherever used in this section are hereby defined and intended to include only the maximum rate of pay provided in each such salary schedule; the term "salary adjustments" shall mean an increase or decrease to the maximum rate of pay;
(e) At the time the Board of Supervisors fixes the salary schedule as provided in (b) above, the Board of Supervisors may fix as conditions and benefits of employment other than salaries as compensation for each classification, conditions and benefits not to exceed the intent of those conditions and benefits granted by collective bargaining agreements to comparable classifications by the employer used for certification of the highest prevailing salary schedule by the civil service commission. The Board of Supervisors may establish such conditions and benefits notwithstanding other provisions or limitations of this Charter, with the exception that such conditions and benefits shall not involve any change in the administration of or benefits of the Retirement System, health service system or vacation allowances provided elsewhere in this Charter. Conditions and benefits of employment existing prior to July 1, 1982 may be continued by the Board of Supervisors;
(f) When the employer used for certification in Subsection (a) above, provides rates of pay during the current fiscal year in excess of those fixed by the Board of Supervisors for said current fiscal year, or vacation and health service benefits greater than such similar benefits provided by this Charter for the staff nurse classification, the civil service commission shall certify to the Board of Supervisors an amount not to exceed the difference of such salary and benefits converted to dollar values and the Board of Supervisors may provide additional salary, conditions and benefits of employment at a cost not to exceed said dollar value.