City of New Haven, police union come to tentative agreement on pay, benefits

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) — A tentative agreement between the City of New Haven and the police union would mean pay increases for current and future police officers, improved work-life balance, and a new retirement plan if approved.

Mayor Justin Elicker and Police Union President Florencio Cotto announced the tentative agreement on Tuesday.

The six-year contract would cover all the city’s sworn police officers, which includes more than 300 existing officers.

The proposed agreement will now be submitted for a formal review and ratification by the union membership. If ratified, Elicker would submit the contract to the full Board of Alders for review and approval.

“We encourage all our members to review the details carefully and participate in the upcoming vote scheduled within the next few weeks,” New Haven Police Union President Florencio Cotto said.

The proposed contract includes pay increases for both current and incoming officers. Current officers would receive annual salary increases, starting with retroactive increases of 2.5% for fiscal years 2022-23 and 2023-24.

After that, the officers would see a 5% increase in the fiscal year 2024-25 and each year following through 2028.

New recruits entering the police academy in fiscal year 2024-25 will receive a starting salary of $70,000, an almost $2,000 increase from the current starting salary of $50,745.

The proposed contract would annually raise the starting salary to $77,175 by fiscal year 2026-27, which, according to the city, would be one of the highest rates in the state.

Work-life balance for patrol officers and administrative staff was also taken into account, with the proposed agreement shifting the number of days they work and not.

Under the tentative agreement, eligible officers would also be able to participate in the new Deferred Retirement Option Plan (DROP), which would help senior officers collect for retirement when they are eligible to retire but still working.

Elicker said the contract, which includes other changes to officers’ healthcare plans and specific disciplinary procedures, is something all sides can be proud of.

“Every day our police officers do an outstanding job under very challenging circumstances and put their lives on the line to keep our residents and streets safe,” Elicker said in a statement Tuesday. “This contract will provide our officers with a well-deserved raise, help retain existing officers, help attract and recruit new officers, and strengthen the police department’s ability to keep our communities safe.”

According to the city, the tentative agreement would result in an estimated one-time cost of $5.6 million to cover retroactive pay, including overtime.

They said an additional $7.5 million would support the proposed salary increases through fiscal year 2017-28.

“This is a critical investment we need to make as a city to compensate our police officers fairly, to be competitive with other police departments in the state, and ultimately to help ensure the safety of our residents,” Elicker said.

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