The deal, approved by union members through a ratification vote earlier this month, is slated for a final vote of approval by the board of county commissioners Tuesday — the same day the board is scheduled for a work session to discuss the county’s controversial agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a federal agency directed by the Trump administration to carry out a mass deportation effort.
According to board meeting documents, the county “has faced challenges” in recruiting and retaining correctional officers in its jail system, the fourth-largest in the state. Under the new deal, negotiated by the Jerry B. Haddock Lodge No. 86 of the Fraternal Order of Police, correctional officers would be paid a minimum hourly rate of $27.42, up from the current $23.44 hourly rate, effective April 25, with a max pay rate of about $40 an hour.
Correctional sergeants (who earn much more), corporals and classification officers — who determine a person’s custody level in the jail and calculate release dates — would similarly receive 17 percent pay hikes later this month, records show. Even more, all corrections employees represented by the union would receive another 5 percent pay raise this October, under a three-year agreement reached by county and the workers’ union. “The Office of Management and Budget and Corrections will closely monitor the budget for the balance of the fiscal year and based upon timing for filling positions and overtime, will come back to the Board this summer to request a budget amendment from reserves,” an internal county memo reads. “Until that time, Corrections will continuously look for operational efficiencies to minimize the budget impact.”…