Council Approves Retroactive Pay Increase for Police

The Los Angeles City Council, after nearly 16 months of sporadic negotiations over a new police labor agreement, unanimously approved Tuesday a retroactive pay raise for about 7,000 rank-and-file officers.

The agreement for a 5% pay raise for each of two years, which still must be formally adopted by the council in ordinance form, settles the economic issues in a protracted contract dispute between the Los Angeles Police Protective League and LAPD management.

The police officers, whose contract expired June 30, 1985, have not had a pay raise since July 1, 1984. And the agreement on a pay hike came only after Mayor Tom Bradley stepped into the fray to help resolve the deadlock, and after San Francisco police officers, whose own salaries were tied into those of their Los Angeles counterparts, had pressed the council to take action.

Long Delay Cited

“We don’t know why it was permitted to drag on,” said Dave Baca of the Police Protective League, which represents the officers and began contract talks in April, 1985. “But at least now we can get the economic portion of the contract into place.”

In its action, the council agreed to increase police salaries 5% effective July 1, 1985, and another 5% effective July 1, 1986. The retroactive portions will be paid in a lump sum once the raises are formally approved.

Under the retroactive agreement, an officer with less than 18 months’ experience who had been making $26,445 a year would make $27,812 under the first pay increase and an annual salary of $29,190 under the second raise, according to the office of the city administrator.

A police officer with two or three years’ experience and at the top of his or her grade, who now makes $34,723, would get a raise to $36,456 under the 1985 rate and $38,294 under the latest increase.

Raise Called ‘Locked In’

Although the salary hike--along with previously negotiated fringe benefits--must still be included in an ordinance and subject to another council vote, city officials including Councilwoman Joy Picus, who chairs the Personnel Committee, said the pay raise is “locked in.”

Bradley was out of town Tuesday on a campaign swing, but spokesman John Stodder said the mayor supports the pay raise.

“The mayor agreed that L.A.’s police officers have waited long enough for their pay increases and for their back pay to be authorized. It was time to get moving, and he urged the council to move on it,” Stodder said.

Stodder denied that Bradley, who had remained silent over the contract dispute, stepped in last week only after he was prodded by the San Francisco Police Officers Assn. The association had supported Bradley in his 1982 bid for governor and is considering whether to endorse the mayor’s current bid for state office.

Under the San Francisco City Charter, local police officers and firefighters are paid according to a formula linked to the average of their counterparts’ salaries in four cities: San Jose, San Diego, Long Beach and Los Angeles.

Bob Barry, president of the 1,800-member San Francisco Police Assn., said he urged Bradley--as did San Francisco Mayor Dianne Feinstein and State Assembly Speaker Willie Brown (D-San Francisco)--to persuade the council to approve the police pay raise. And he said he is convinced that it was this lobbying effort that led to the council vote.

Other Contacts

Barry, however, added: “Absolutely, there was no discussion at any time of any quid pro quo situation for Mayor Bradley. I’m unequivocal about that.”

Bradley was not the only local politician who spoke with the San Francisco officers. Council President Pat Russell and Councilman Richard Alatorre also heard from them. And Picus, who carried the pay raise issue on the council floor, confirmed that the timing of the pay raise issue and the unusual public session--which followed a closed-door meeting last week over police pay--were a direct result of the interest shown by San Francisco officers.

Tuesday’s council vote, however, did not come soon enough to help the San Francisco police.

“It was about 12 hours too late,” said Barry, whose association had to settle for a 1.3% increase Monday from that city’s Civil Service Commission.

The recommendations for the 5% pay raise for Los Angeles police officers were included in a fact-finding reporting announced last month. In approving the raise, the council agreed to separate some of the non-economic issues that have been major roadblocks to a contract agreement. They included a union demand that disciplinary matters be submitted to binding arbitration, which LAPD management adamantly opposes.

The issues of transfers, promotions and firings of probationary employees were also excluded from the grievance procedures in Tuesday’s actions and left on the table for further negotiations.

Police Chief Daryl F. Gates is on vacation, but Lt. Dan Cooke said Gates is firm about keeping his authority on personnel matters provided by the City Charter. “He is rather adamant in his stand that a police chief has authority to hire and fire and transfer, and he wants to retain that,” Cooke said.