Trustees to Talk Police Union Contract Tonight

The Village Board will hold a special meeting tonight to consider the results of arbitration between the village and the police officers union.

Montgomery’s police officers have been working without a contract since May 1, 2010. After nearly a year of negotiations, the new contract went to arbitration. On April 26, the Metropolitan Alliance of Police, Chapter 333, and the village presented their arguments to Willowbrook attorney and arbitrator Michelle Camden.

Camden’s ruling has been delivered. The two sides disagreed on 16 separate issues, separated into seven economic and nine non-economic. And while the union prevailed on most of the non-economic issues, including a new grievance policy for disciplinary actions and the automatic deduction of union dues from paychecks, Camden largely sided with the village on the economic ones.

That includes wage increases. The union had been pushing for a three percent raise in the already-completed Fiscal Year 2011, and a two-percent raise in FY 2012 and FY 2013. But Camden went with the village’s proposal, which will see officers receive no raise for FY 2011, a one-percent raise for FY 2012, and a two-percent raise for FY 2013.

Additionally, any officers currently making the maximum allowed ($70, 671) will get a lump sum of $1,000 as compensation.

The union had argued that its proposal was in line with what others in the village had received, but the village successfully argued that wasn’t the case. All non-union and public works employees got a three-percent raise on Nov. 1, 2010, but those employees did not receive a raise in FY 2011, and will get a one-percent raise in FY 2012.

“Awarding the union’s wage proposal is in excess of what is required for these officers to maintain their standard of living while working for the village of Montgomery,” Camden wrote in her report.

Similarly, Camden sided with the village on insurance contributions. Officers currently contribute 10 percent of their insurance costs, and the union wished to cap any increase at no more than 10 percent above that. But Camden said the village needs to shop for insurance as a group, and must have the ability to negotiate for everyone, with the same conditions.

The union also wished to change the way sick leave was accrued, removing the current 320-hour maximum and allowing a payout of up to 320 hours of sick time for those exiting village employment in good standing. The village countered with a cap of 640 hours, but argued that a payout would change sick leave into a retirement benefit, and would cost too much.

Camden sided with the village on that one. She also agreed with the village that the uniform allowance did not need to be raised from $700 to $850, and that officers did not need to increase paid funeral leave from one to three days if a grandparent, grandchild, aunt, uncle, nephew or niece dies. (Officers are eligible for three days paid leave for the death of any other relative, including spouses and children.)

The union did prevail on accrued comp time—their proposal will see officers able to replenish their comp time, and carry it over from year to year. The village wanted a cap of 48 hours, with no replenishment or carry-over.

Camden also agreed with the union that the word “reasonable” should be added to language about requiring health examinations for officers out of work for three or more days, including drug tests. Saying there should be reasonable questions of an employee’s fitness for duty before these tests are ordered, the union said, allows for grievances to be filed if an officer feels a test was unjustly given.

The village and the union had previously agreed on all but these issues. The board will discuss Camden’s conclusions tonight, and if agreed, the new contract will run through the end of April, 2013. The meeting begins at 7 p.m. at , 200 N. River St., and is free and open to the public.