Pierce County sheriff’s deputies have agreed to a contract with no cost-of-living wage increase for this year.
The agreement marks the first time that 300 deputies, sergeants and lieutenants won’t receive an annual pay raise, or COLA, in at least 20 years, county labor relations manager Joe Carrillo said Monday.
The deputies guild received a 2.5 percent COLA in 2011.
The county also agreed to pay up to 10 percent of any increase in health care premiums this year. Any increase above that would be split evenly by the county and the commissioned officers.
Sixteen of the county’s 21 other bargaining units have approved the same package, including no annual wage increase. Nonrepresented and represented employees generally received cost-of-living adjustments before this year.
Carrillo said the Deputy Sheriff’s Independent Guild notified him Dec. 29 that it had ratified the one-year contract extension with no COLA. It’s expected to go before the County Council in a few weeks.
“I have to applaud them,” Carrillo said of the deputies. “They recognize that things have been difficult and continue to be difficult.”
Lt. Cynthia Fajardo, president of the guild, could not be reached for comment Monday.
The county’s overall budget has dropped from $863 million in 2008 to $802 million this year. More than 450 positions were cut.
The deputy sheriff’s guild is in arbitration with Pierce County over the county wanting all guild employees to pay a share of health care insurance costs for the first time last year, Carrillo said. Prior to that, only those in the most expensive coverage option had to pay any of the premium.
The budget for the sheriff’s department – which includes deputies and corrections deputies – is $114.7 million, making up 42 percent of the $273.6 million budget this year for core government services.
The 300-member Pierce County Corrections Guild has been operating without a contract since the end of 2010. The union for corrections officers and sergeants is in mediation with the county, Carrillo said. The county offered the corrections guild the same package for 2012 that it offered other units.
Steve Maynard: 253-597-8647 steve.maynard@thenewstribune.com blog.thenewstribune.com/politics
JOIN THE DISCUSSION | Register here
We welcome comments. Please keep them civil, short and to the point. ALL CAPS, spam, obscene, profane, abusive and off topic comments will be deleted. Repeat offenders will be blocked. Thanks for taking part — and abiding by these simple rules. A thorough explanation of rules of conduct can be found in our Terms of Service. If you have any questions, including why your comment may not be showing immediately after you submit it, be sure to visit the commenting FAQ.