An approximately 20% bump in pay over four years plus bonuses could help incentivize more people to join the county police department and stay at the job longer, officials hope.
The new pay package, set by an arbitration panel after negotiations broke down between the State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers and state and county representatives, was approved Wednesday by the Hawaii County Council.
The council, with little comment, passed the resolution 7-0, with Hilo Councilman Aaron Chung and North Kona Councilman Holeka Inaba absent.
All counties except Maui have already passed similar measures, committing to pay the agreed-upon amount.
For Hawaii County, that comes to $31.7 million in additional salary and benefits for the police, from rank and file police patrol officers up to excluded managerial positions, over the course of the four-year contract.
“This is big as far as an increase in costs,” said Puna Councilman Matt Kanealii-Kleinfelder, the council Finance Committee chairman who added he favored the increases.
It will also have a big impact on paychecks.
For example, a police officer with seven to nine years experience who currently has a $73,824 base annual pay will see it increase to $85,460 in July 2024, in addition to a one-time lump-sum bonus of $1,850. In that same time period, a sergeant with similar experience would have their current $86,748 annual salary go to $100,421, in addition to the one-time bonus.
“If approved, it is our hope that this new contract will assist in recruiting new police officers and retaining experienced officers to address our chronic understaffing that grows more acute each month,” SHOPO President Robert “Bobby” Cavaco said Monday in a statement. “We must be able to compete with the mainland on providing wages and benefits that allow qualified individuals to choose a career in law enforcement and be able to afford to live here. This contract is a good first step.”
Hawaii County is actually in better shape than Maui and Honolulu. Almost 90% of the county’s 484 sworn positions were filled as of July 15, according to a department report to the Police Commission in July.
In comparison, Honolulu PD is down approximately 350 of its 1,900 officers and Maui’s 300 officers are down by about 100, or 25%, SHOPO said.
The council, by the same vote, also approved $914,437 in raises over the same period for the newly created Hawaii Government Employees Association bargaining unit for water safety officers, which was also set by an arbitration panel.
The council earlier this year approved raises for United Public Workers members. bargaining Unit 01, representing about 6,000 blue-collar workers. UPW workers received a lump-sum $1,000 each to all employees who were employed full-time as of June 30, 2021, followed by 3.72% raises Oct. 1 of this year, and 5% in July of each of the two following years, under the agreement ratified by union members.