On Nov. 30, Bronxville Village Administrator James Palmer signed off on a three-page contract with the village’s police union that will increase police officers’ health insurance contribution to 17.5 percent starting in June 2016. The current percentage is 15.
In addition, starting in June 2018, that contribution rate will increase to 20 percent for all active union members.
The new four-year contract expires on May 31, 2019.
Salary increases, which are retroactive to June 1, 2015, were set in the agreement for 1.75 percent for the first year of the agreement. In June 2016, salaries will increase by 2 percent, with another 2 percent to follow starting on June 1, 2017. In June 2018, PBA members will receive a 2.5 percent salary boost.
“We believe that the agreement is fair not only for the men and women of the police department, but also fair for the community,” Palmer said. “The numbers are consistent with what we’re seeing in other places.”
But the hike in insurance contributions for force members is presumably the biggest complaint.
That 20 percent contribution is higher than surrounding communities, according to Palmer. “We are one of the highest communities in the area,” he said, comparatively speaking about the union members’ contribution rates.
Palmer estimated that health care costs to the village for union members had risen about 7 percent over 2015.
Current force members who pay into the New York State Police and Firefighter Retirement System plan for at least 20 years and serve in Bronxville for 15 years will benefit from an increase in village contributions to insurance from 75 percent to 85 percent. According to Palmer, only one officer currently meets that criteria. “We have a significant number of younger officers,” he said.
Current retirees will receive no increase in their plans and will continue to receive 75 percent in health insurance subsidization from the village, which is less than some surrounding communities, Palmer said. “There are many communities that pay 100 percent,” he noted, adding that there are no plans to add more police officers to the force.
In addition to the salary and health benefit items, the village and the PBA agreed to establish a Labor-Management Committee that has been meeting since June 1, 2015 comprising members of the police department and the village, appointed by Wilson Valentin, PBA president, and Palmer. The purpose of the committee is to coordinate police work shifts with village policing needs.
Multiple police officers reached out to by the Review declined to comment on the contract.
Wilson Valentin, Bronxville’s union president, could not be reached for comment as of press time.
