Las Vegas approves labor deal with peace officers

Las Vegas has approved a labor deal with the Las Vegas Peace Officers Association that is expected to save the city $3.6 million over the next two years.

City Council members ratified the deal Wednesday on a 6-0 vote. Councilwoman Lois Tarkanian was absent.

The agreement eliminates all raises, freezes longevity pay, dispenses with the uniform allowance and makes a
1.5 percent salary cut in each of the next two fiscal years.

The association, which represents more than 150 workers in the corrections department, is the last of the city’s four bargaining units to reach a concessions agreement.

Combined, concessions from the Peace Officers Association, the Las Vegas Police Protective Association, International Association of Firefighters Local 1285 and the Las Vegas City Employees Association are expected to save $8.5 million this year and at least $13.8 million in each of the 2012 and 2013 budget years.

But the Peace Officers Association agreement’s significance might end up being its long-term effect.

It sets up a new compensation plan for new corrections workers that will kick in when the city starts hiring again.

The new workers would start at a salary 10 percent lower than the current one, and the salary scale would have its top two pay steps removed. Step raises would be 3.5 percent instead of 5.5 percent, longevity pay would be eliminated, and the new workers would have to pay half the contribution to the Public Employee Retirement System, something the city pays for in full now.

City Manager Betsy Fretwell said the changes are a model that can be used in talks with other unions, preventing personnel costs from growing as quickly as they did in the past.

Salary studies commissioned by the city as part of talks found that many city salaries were higher than market averages for similar positions.

A corrections sergeant in Las Vegas had an annual salary of $93,143, which was 21 percent higher than the market average. A city corrections officer’s salary of $67,680 was 78 percent higher than the market average, according to the city’s study.

The unions, including the Police Officers Association, did not put much weight on the studies, saying the city fixed the data around a desired conclusion.

Contact reporter Alan Choate at achoate@reviewjournal.com or 702-229-6435.