Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Police union, North Las Vegas reach tentative agreement

North Las Vegas and its police union have reached a tentative agreement to save 11 police officers’ jobs for the next 18 months.

The agreement, first presented by the North Las Vegas Police Officers Association on Dec. 8, includes giving up pay raises and lowering entry-level pay by 10 percent.

The agreement also eliminates the ability to sell back sick days and eliminates holiday pay next fiscal year to avoid layoffs. Those two measures will save the city about $1.6 million, said Joyce Lira, the city’s human resources director.

The union also asked that the city not begin exploring privatizing the city’s detention center until June 2014, city spokeswoman Juliet Casey said.

But the agreement says that if the city finds itself with another budget shortfall, the police union will need to come back and discuss further concessions, she said.

On Dec. 8, union President Michael Yarter said the proposed cuts would amount to about $5 million.

“By Wednesday of next week, we’ll have an answer as to what the membership decides,” Yarter said Thursday. “I think it’s a reasonable and fair concessions package.”

Under the city’s working budget reduction plan, the city must close a $35.1 million budget gap by July 1, 2012. Under the plan, 27 police officer positions would be cut without any changes.

The tentative agreement, if ratified, would save 11 police officer positions. The other 16 positions were saved through a federal grant.

The tentative agreement cannot go into effect until it is approved by the union’s membership and the City Council.

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