Three-Year Police Labor Contract Gains Approval

By Andrew Gorosko

After a year of negotiations, the Newtown Police Union, Local 3153, and the town have reached a three-year labor agreement in which the police receive annual pay raises, but agree to progressively increase the amount of money that they contribute toward their medical benefits.

The 51-page labor agreement, which was endorsed by the Board of Selectmen this week, has received approval from members of the police union. The agreement covers 42 police officers. The police chief and the captain are covered by separate agreements.

The three-year agreement is retroactive to July 1, 2005. It expires on June 30, 2008.

“I think it was fair to both sides…Overall, it was a good contract…It was a reasonable settlement,” said First Selectman Herb Rosenthal.

The pay raises provided in the contract are comparable to other pay raises provided in public sector employment, he said.

The annual pay raises provided in the contract are 3.75 percent for each of the first two years, and 3.5 percent for the third year of the agreement.

However, the police agree to progressively increase their biweekly payments toward medical benefits. In the third year of the new contract, the biweekly payments would increase to $36.50 for single-person coverage, $41.50 for two-person coverage, and 45.50 for family coverage. In their previous contract, those three biweekly amounts were $30.50, $35.50, and $39.50, respectively.

Under the new pact, the police would increase their payments for medical prescriptions, emergency health care, and doctor’s office visits.

Mr Rosenthal said that when the police pay raises are balanced against the health benefit concessions, the annual net cost increase to the town for the contract ranges from 3 to 3.5 percent.

The current police budget is approximately $3,285,000. The police budget proposed for the 2006-07 fiscal year is approximately $3,415,000.

The new police contract changes also involve increases in the police private duty hourly pay rate, the clothing allowance, and the surviving spousal pension benefit.

Also, new contract language has been added concerning job performance evaluations, the holiday schedule, work shift bidding, overtime procedures, vacation schedule bidding, private duty police work outside of Newtown, work preference days, the probationary period, discipline, height and weight requirements, health incentives, and the police dog program.

Police Chief Michael Kehoe said he is happy that the town and the police have reached a contract agreement.

The negotiating units for the two sides met about 25 times during the past year, he said. “We wanted to air all of the issues thoroughly,” he said.

The negotiations resulted in the clarification of previously unclear police contract language, he said.

Medical benefit costs have risen dramatically, resulting in the town seeking health benefit concessions from the union members, he said.

Chief Kehoe termed the labor agreement, “A fair contract for all parties involved.”

Newtown Police Union President Andrew Stinson said of the new labor pact, “We’re pleased with the outcome. It was very straightforward contract.”

Officer Stinson termed the agreement, “a very, fair equitable contract on both ends.” He noted that that attorneys were not involved in the negotiations until the end of the bargaining process, when they were called in to check details.