County Deputy Sheriffs’ Assn. Accepts Pact

The Ventura County Deputy Sheriffs’ Assn. on Friday accepted a new 13-month contract, putting an end to six months of tense negotiations.

The union’s 750 members--from sheriff’s deputies to sergeants as well as investigators with the district attorney’s office--overwhelmingly accepted the contract, said Donna Clontz, an association lawyer who participated in negotiations. She would not reveal the vote tally.

The new contract, which will take effect Nov. 2 if the county Board of Supervisors ratifies it, does not include across-the-board raises.

The Board of Supervisors has stated it will not approve across-the-board pay raises for county employees for fiscal 1998, which began July 1.

But deputies on the low end of the pay scale will jump to a higher pay level at a quicker pace, according to Clontz.

“We want to be able to pay our sheriffs comparable wages so they’ll stay with us,” Clontz said. An entry-level deputy makes $625 a week, she said.

Association members approved the contract contingent upon a promise that county officials would return to the negotiating table immediately to work out a pay formula for the next contract that would include across-the-board hikes beginning in late 1998 or early 1999.

The new contract also would include an upgrade in medical benefits, Clontz said.

County supervisors are scheduled to consider ratifying the contract Oct. 28.