Sergeants Give Thumbs-Up To Wage Contract

By REUVEN BLAU

Members of the Sergeants Benevolent Association voted overwhelmingly Aug. 6 to ratify a 74-month contract with the Bloomberg administration that will give them raises totaling 24 percent and, with longevity pay included, brings basic pay for veteran supervisors above $100,000.

Approximately 77 percent of the union's 4,623 members voted in favor of the new deal. The final vote tally, counted by the American Arbitration Association, was 2,994 for and 861 against.

Mullins Pleased

"Today's voting results prove that membership support for this contract was overwhelmingly positive," said SBA President Ed Mullins.

The proposed contract, which is one of the longest deals every negotiated by the city, runs from June 1, 2005 to July 31, 2011.

The agreement was an astonishing change of position for Mr. Mullins, who had repeatedly rejected the 3 percent and 3.15-percent raises under the first two years of the deal as below the rate of inflation.

Added Gains

Mr. Mullins cited the added gains in the overall agreement and the maximum salary at the end of the deal in explaining his change of heart.

The SBA used a two-month delay in each of the contract's last two years to help fund added longevity increases, annuity boosts, and welfare fund raises. By Aug. 1, 2011, a veteran Sergeant's basic maximum salary will rise to $94,962, up from the prior $76,403.

Senior Sergeants will see overall compensation reach $103,000 with longevity pay, holiday bonuses, uniform allowance, and other benefits.

New Sergeants will continue to reach maximum pay after five salary steps and four years, while those promoted prior to April 1, 2006 hit top pay after three years.

The starting salary for new supervisors will be $73,000 effective July 1, 2008, up from the current $61,093. The enhanced schedule reflects the administration's efforts to rebuild the salary structure for newly promoted Sergeants who had their pay stretched under the last agreement.

Incentive to Advance

The raises and other added benefits are designed to encourage more Police Officers to study for and take the Sergeants' exam. The NYPD has been struggling to generate enough qualified candidates, with only 225 officers out of the 3,866 applicants passing the Feb. 3, 2007 exam, based on preliminary results.

The contract places the SBA seven years ahead of the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association, whose members are working under a deal that expired Aug. 1, 2004. The PBA is in the early stages of an arbitration process that is unlikely to be resolved before next summer.

While the Bloomberg administration has sought to significantly upgrade starting salary for Police Officers, the PBA has objected that its offer would force new cops to suffer benefit reductions in other areas during their early years on the job. The union also maintains that the wage increases accepted by other uniformed unions for incumbents are unacceptable.