Pasadena : Officers Picket City Hall

Off-duty Pasadena police officers, at times numbering up to 70, picketed City Hall for five hours Tuesday to protest stalled contract negotiations.

The city’s 170 officers and investigators have been working without a contract since April 22. Although a state mediator was called in, negotiations are stalled, Pasadena Police Officers Assn. President Dennis Diaz said.

City Manager Donald McIntyre said that he and city directors discussed the negotiations Tuesday and that the directors authorized further talks. “I’m optimistic we can get a resolution,” he said.

The picket line was the officers’ second attempt to garner public support for their cause. Last week, about 35 officers at police headquarters left the building together for a 15-minute break.

The association is asking for pay and benefits increases to retain experienced officers, Diaz said. Pasadena ranks 13th among a list of 14 similar-sized cities whose benefits and pay were compared by the association and city staff members, he said. The association also wants to codify some unwritten practices including pay for off-duty service revolver training.