Memorandum

City of Lawrence

City Manager’s Office

TO:	Tom Markus, City Manager
FROM:	Casey Toomay, Assistant City Manager
CC:	Diane Stoddard, Assistant City Manager; Brandon McGuire, Assistant to the City Manager
DATE:	August 21, 2018
RE:	Agreement with the Members of the LPOA for 2019 and 2020

Background

The current Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the City and members of the Lawrence Police Officers’ Association (LPOA) expires December 31, 2018.  Pursuant to Resolution 6817, the City and the LPOA began discussions regarding a new MOU in April of 2018. 

After several weeks of discussion, the City and LPOA reached impasse on July 1, 2018.  Pursuant to Resolution 6817, the parties continued discussions under the auspices of a mediator from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service.  When impasse continued to exist, both parties provided proposals to the City Commission.  The Commission scheduled a hearing for August 14, but discussions between the parties continued. 

The parties were able to reach tentative agreement on all remaining issues and therefore the hearing was deferred until August 21.  The members of the LPOA ratified the agreement on August 16, 2018 and the agreement is now ready for consideration of the City Commission. 

Remaining Issues Resolved

Below is a summary of the issues at impasse when the City Commission received last proposals from the parties and how each was resolved. 

Section 3.1 Compensation Plan

The LPOA’s last proposal was to retain the existing language regarding the pay plan while the City’s last proposal modified the pay plan to provide a lump sum payment to detectives in lieu of a general wage adjustment.  The parties tentatively agreed to retain the existing language.  

Section 3.2 General Wage Adjustment

The City’s last proposal was to provide a general wage adjustment of 1.5% for Police Officers only in 2019 and a general wage adjustment of 2% for Police Officers only in 2020.  The LPOA’s last proposal was to add a 2.5% merit step to the pay plan for both Police Officers and Detectives in 2019 and a general wage adjustment of 1.5% for Police Officers only in 2020. 

The parties tentatively agreed to adding the new step to the pay plan for Police Officers and Detectives and to the general wage adjustment for Officers only in 2020. 

Section 3.3 Longevity

The City’s last proposal was to provide a longevity bonus to employees upon completing 10 years of service that increased from $500 for 10 to 14 years of service, to a cap of $1,0000 for 20 or more years of service.  Employees hired after January 1, 2019 would not be eligible for longevity.  The LPOA’s last proposal was to retain existing language on longevity. 

The parties tentatively agreed to the City providing a longevity payment to employees hired before January 1, 2019 upon completing 5 years of service.  The payment amounts will be $250 for 5 to 9 years of service, $500 for 10 to 14 years, $750 for 15 to 19 years, and $1,000 for 20 or more years of service.  Employees hired after January 1, 2019 will not be eligible for longevity. 

Section 3.7 Shift Differential

The City’s last proposal was to maintain the existing shift differentials for officers.  The LPOA’s last proposal was to also establish a new shift differential of 50 cents per hour for detectives assigned to shifts that begin after 12:00 p.m. 

The parties tentatively agreed to maintain the existing shift differentials for officers.

Section 6.3 Emergency Leave

The LPOA’s last proposal was to provide officers or detectives assigned to a 10 hour shift six working days (equivalent to 60 hours) of paid emergency leave.  The City’s last proposal was to administer emergency leave pursuant to the City’s employee handbook, which provides employees with 48 hours of paid emergency leave. 

The parties tentatively agreed to the City providing officers or detectives assigned to 10 hour shifts five working days (equivalent to 50 hours) of paid emergency leave. 

Section 6.6 Physical Fitness Days

Section 6.7 Minimum Physical Fitness

The City’s last proposal was to retain the additional paid day-off for officers and detectives meeting the maximum physical fitness standard but to eliminate the paid day-off for officers and detectives meeting the minimum physical fitness standard.  The LPOA’s last proposal was to retain the paid day-off for those meeting the minimum physical fitness standard.

The parties tentatively agreed to eliminating the day off for those meeting the minimum standard but retaining the day off for those meeting the maximum physical fitness standard. 

Section 7.3 Funeral Expenses

The City’s last proposal was for the City to pay reasonable funeral expenses in an amount not to exceed $5,000 for officers or detectives killed in the line of duty.  The LPOA’s last proposal was for the City to pay reasonable funeral expenses in an amount not to exceed $10,000.

The parties tentatively agreed to the City paying reasonable funeral expenses in an amount not to exceed $10,000 for officers or detectives killed in the line of duty.

Other Changes From Existing Agreement

The proposed agreement has other changes from the existing agreement between the City and the members of the LPOA.  In general, the agreement was streamlined by removing superfluous and unnecessary language.  The agreement was also updated to use more inclusive pronouns like “Chief or Chief’s designee” as opposed to “Chief or his designee”.

The proposed agreement also represents a significant reset in three major areas - management rights, internal equity, and market competitiveness.

• Management Rights.  Resolution 6817 defines management rights and states that management rights are not subject to discussion.  However, many of these management rights have eroded over time.  The proposed agreement restores many management rights, giving the Chief the ultimate responsibility and authority for policy making and day to day operations. 
• Internal Equity.  The City has an interest in ensuring that employees are treated equitably across the entire organization.  In many instances, compensation and other benefits for LPOA members were more generous than those provided to other City employees.  The proposed agreement still provides more generous benefits in some areas but also attempts to address internal equity. 
• Market Competitiveness.  The City has an interest in being able to attract and retain high quality employees and competitive wages and benefits are an important part of that.  The City is currently conducting a compensation study to determine how our wages and benefits compare to other similar employers in our area.  The first phase of the study was to look at positions in the Police Department.  The proposed agreement ensures that we are offering competitive wages and benefits that are at or slightly above the average of the market. 

Staff Recommendation

Staff recommends approval of the proposed agreement with the LPOA for 2019 and 2020.

Action

Approve an agreement with the members of the Lawrence Police Officers Association for the term of January 1, 2019 through December 31, 2020 and authorize the Mayor to execute the agreement.