Seattle police and city reach tentative contract agreement
Apr 30, 2013, 2:40 PM | Updated: 3:14 pm
Seattle police officers have worked without a contract for two years, and the head of the Seattle Police Guild says officer morale has suffered as a result.(MyNorthwest.com file)
(MyNorthwest.com file)
Seattle’s police guild has reached a tentative contract agreement with the city.
Officers have worked without a contract for two years and negotiations have dragged on since 2010, during which time Seattle Police Guild President Rich O’Neill said officer morale has suffered.
“All of the posturing and all of the arguing can move to the background. Let’s just move forward,” O’Neill said at a news conference on Tuesday.
Union members will vote on the new contract over the next two weeks with ballots expected to be counted on May 22. Details of the agreement will be released when the contract is ratified, but the guild said it includes a cost of living pay raise and an agreement on how the department will implement reforms brought on by the Department of Justice.
Because a tentative agreement was reached, the union announced it would withdraw a lawsuit against the city.
O’Neill said the four-year contract will ensure that Seattle police officers remain the highest paid in the state. With 1,220 members, the Seattle Police Guild is the largest police labor union in the Northwest.
