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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PR- 326-08
August 21, 2008

MAYOR BLOOMBERG ANNOUNCES TENTATIVE AGREEMENT WITH THE PATROLMEN'S BENEVOLENT ASSOCIATION

By End of 4-Year Deal, Top Pay Will Be $91,823 Before Overtime

Agreement for Police Officers Provides Over 20% Increases in Compensation, Including Almost 17% in Salary

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Patrick J. Lynch, President of the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association (PBA), announced that a tentative contract settlement has been reached with the PBA on a collective bargaining agreement covering the period from August 1, 2006 through July 31, 2010.  The agreement, which is subject to ratification, covers over 23,000 police officers. This settlement marks the first time an agreement has been reached across the bargaining table with the PBA since 1994. 

“We have the 23,000 police officers of the NYPD, as much as anyone, to thank for the low crime and heightened quality of life we enjoy in this City,” said Mayor Bloomberg.  “The most important aspect of the contract is that it will raise the starting salary for rookie cops from $36,000, to over 40,000, and that will be retroactive to 2006. I have always believed that the best contract agreements are those that are reached at the bargaining table, and this is a good example of that.”

“Officers in the New York City Police Department shoulder responsibilities that exceed those of other officers across the country,” said Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly. “They have helped drive crime down to record lows. They more than deserve the increased compensation reflected in this new agreement.”

“This negotiated contract, the first for the PBA in almost 15 years, continues to move us toward a market rate of pay that our police officers have earned and so rightly deserve,” said PBA President Lynch said. “It brings a police officer’s top salary at contract’s end to $76,488 and our total monetary compensation package to over $94,000.  The agreement also includes, for the first time, an historic escalator clause that links longevity pay and health and welfare benefits contributions to the percentage change of wage increases, ensuring that those substantial benefits automatically rise in the same proportion as salary.   That link will serve to magnify each future increase in an officer’s earnings while insuring the long-term stability of our health and welfare funds for both active and retired officers.  Additionally, major changes to work rules, including ones that allow police officers to mutually exchange tours and to better utilize existing sick leave will vastly improve the quality of life for our members.  We are pleased that a dramatic change in the negotiating atmosphere has allowed for a real exchange of ideas and has resulted in a contract that deserves police officer’s support.”

The principal features of the settlement are:

            • 4%, compounded, effective August 1, 2006
            • 4%, compounded, effective August 1, 2007
            • 4%, compounded, effective August 1, 2008
            • 4%, compounded, effective August 1, 2009

At the end of this contract, a police officer’s basic maximum salary will be $76,488, compared to the current amount of $65,382. With longevity pay, holiday pay, night shift differential and other additions, total compensation will be approximately $91,823, plus overtime. The total increase in compensation is 20.05 percent, including a compounded wage increase of 16.99 percent.  

New Hires

The salary schedule for police officers hired on/after January 1, 2006, will be as follows:

 

Effective August 1, 2009

Appointment Rate

$41,975

After 1.5 Years

$43,644

After 2.5 Years

$48,779

After 3.5 Years

$53,270

After 4.5 Years

$56,609

Basic Maximum after 5.5 years

$76,488

Longevity Schedule

Effective July 31, 2008, the longevity schedule will be increased by $313 at each step. Also, effective July 31, 2008, these steps will be increased by any future general wage increases.  In addition, effective July 31, 2010, the longevity schedule will be increased by $1,230 at each step. 

Welfare Funds

Effective July 31, 2008, the City will contribute a $400 one-time lump sum payment per retiree to the Retiree Health and Welfare Funds and effective July 31, 2010, an additional $100 one-time lump sum payment per retiree shall be paid to the Retiree Health and Welfare Funds.  In addition, effective July 31, 2008, the annual rate of contributions to the Active and Retiree Welfare Funds shall be increased by any future general wage increases.

Vacations

Effective July 31, 2010, employees hired on or after July 1, 2008, shall be entitled to thirteen (13) annual vacation days during their third, fourth and fifth years of service.  In the recent PERB award, the number of vacation days was reduced for new hires in the first five years of service from 20 days to 10 days.  The PBA has bought back three vacation days as part of this agreement.

Other Provisions

Effective July 1, 2008, the parties have agreed that the officers will qualify at the shooting range on a regular work day and will not surrender a vacation day or any other time or leave. Employees who have already utilized a vacation day shall have that day restored.  A pilot program shall be established that will provide that eligible employees, who request sick leave for an injury or illness, shall no longer be subject to home visitation and confinement, outside the hours of the employee’s regularly scheduled tour of duty, provided the sick leave utilization remains at acceptable levels as negotiated by the parties.

Effective February 20, 2010, police officers assigned to Detective track commands as so-called “White Shield Detectives” shall work the same length of tour and number of appearances as currently worked by Detectives in the respective units to which they are assigned.

The procedures for mutual exchange of tours currently found in the Administrative Guide shall be incorporated into the collective bargaining agreement and in the Patrol Guide.

The Mayor thanked Deputy Mayor for Operations Edward Skyler, Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly, PBA President Patrick J. Lynch and his committee, Labor Commissioner James F. Hanley and First Deputy Commissioner Margaret M. Connor and their team, and Budget Director Mark Page and his staff for their efforts in reaching this agreement.







MEDIA CONTACT:


Stu Loeser / Jason Post   (212) 788-2958




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