North Aurora police sergeants, village come to terms

North Aurora’s five police sergeants will be getting a 2 percent raise under a contract the village board approved Monday night.

The three-year contract is retroactive to June 1, 2009 and expires May 31, 2012.

The sergeants ratified the contract July 13.

The bargaining unit was certified by the Illinois Labor Relations Board in March 2010. This is its first contract.

The sergeants received no raise for the first year, 2 percent for 2010-11 and 2 percent for 2011-12. The village had offered a 1.5 percent raise for 2010-11, but the union rejected that and requested arbitration. The village negotiators decided it was not worth the cost of arbitration (estimated at $10,000 to $15,000) when the difference in the proposals would only cost the village an extra $2,453.57.

For the 2011-12 year, it sets base pay at $74,009 to $105,236, depending on the sergeants’ length of employment.

The sergeants will receive more pay for court standby when the are not notified of the standby until after 5 p.m. the day preceding the court case. And if the village requires any changes in uniform, the village will be responsible for its cost.

The contract specifies that when the next contract is negotiated the village and union will negotiate whether disciplinary appeals should continue to be heard by the police commission. The sergeants want disciplinary appeals heard by an arbitrator.

The sergeants are represented by the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police Labor Council.