Modesto considers pay raises for police managers

Modesto’s 39 police sergeants and lieutenants and four captains are in line to receive 2 percent raises and incentive pay – including one-time payments totaling $2,500 this year – in agreements that will come before the City Council on Tuesday night for approval.

A city report states these deals will cost the general fund $209,353 annually plus a one-time cost of $242,338 for the incentives. The council is being asked to approve a one-year agreement between the city and the Modesto Police Management Association, which represents the sergeants and lieutenants, and the pay increase and benefits for the four captains, who are not represented by a labor group.

The MPMA agreement – which was reached through bargaining – is effective from Dec. 31, 2015, through Dec. 31, 2016. The deals call for:

▪  MPMA members and the captains to receive 2 percent raises effective this month. The annual salary for sergeants currently is $79,370 to $96,464; it’s $94,355 to $114,683 for lieutenants and $105,966 to $129,122 for captains. All of them also would receive one-time payments of $1,500 this month and $1,000 in July. The city also would increase the salary range for captains by 2.5 percent. The net result of that is the four captains will see their pay increase by 4.5 percent. Deputy City Manager Joe Lopez said the salary range increase will ensure the pay ranges for lieutenants and captains is equitable.

▪  Sergeants and lieutenants also would receive specialty pay. For instance, sergeants would receive 5 percent for being assigned to traffic or gangs and 2 percent for being assigned to narcotics or internal affairs. Lieutenants working as area commanders or assistant division commanders would receive 2.5 percent in additional pay.

▪  Increase the specialty pay from 5.7 percent to 6.7 percent for MPMA members and captains who have a supervisory certificate from California’s Peace Officers Standards and Training Commission, which sets the standards for the selection and training standards for law enforcement in the state. This additional pay would expire in December.

▪  Sergeants, lieutenants and captains would receive 32 hours of “special leave” that they must use or cash out by December. Sergeants also would receive 24 hours of additional holiday leave through December. They could cash out any of this leave.

Lopez said the proposed deals include “cleanup language” regarding health and retirement benefits to bring them in conformance with recent changes to the law. He said none of these changes is substantive.

The council also is expected to adopt new regulations governing massage and massage businesses. The council adopted a temporary ban in May on new massage and bodywork businesses from opening as well as the expansion and relocation of existing businesses to give the city time to develop new regulations over concerns about prostitution and human trafficking at some businesses. A recent change in state law gave local communities more control over these businesses.

The proposed new regulations include requiring massage and body work business owners and managers who have not been certified by the California Massage Therapy Council to receive a massage business permit from the Police Department. The department would run a background check on applicants, who also would need a city business license. The California Massage Therapy Council also conducts background checks on its applicants.

The council meets at 5:30 p.m. in the basement chambers of Tenth Street Place, 1010 10th St.

This story was originally published February 8, 2016 at 5:11 PM with the headline "Modesto considers pay raises for police managers."