Lake County's ranger police get new 2-year contract
The Lake County Forest Preserve District's ranger police officers will receive raises during the next two years under the terms of a labor contract approved this week, officials said.
The pact, which can be read online at lcfpd.org, calls for rangers to receive across-the-board 0.75-percent pay increases for 2015 starting Jan. 1. They'll receive a 0.5-percent pay bump Jan. 1, 2016, too.
Additionally, rangers will receive 2-percent pay raises on their employment anniversaries in 2015 and 2016. That rate is consistent with the previous contract, according to a district memo.
The forest board approved the deal without controversy Tuesday at its meeting in Waukegan.
Forest board member Carol Calabresa called the pay raises modest. The contract reflects the economic struggles people in Lake County and across the nation are experiencing, she said.
"We understood that people are going through tough economic times," said Calabresa, a Libertyville Republican.
Forest Preserve District Commissioner Aaron Lawlor, who serves on the finance committee that recommended the contract, called the negotiations "phenomenal." The pay raises are similar to what nonunion county employees receive, said Lawlor, a Vernon Hills Republican who leads the county board.
The 13 ranger police officers are represented by the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police. Their previous contract expired Dec. 31.
The new contract applies only to ranger police officers, not other employees in the forest district's public safety department, such as sergeants, shift commanders or community service officers.
In addition to the salary changes:
• Rangers working on call will be paid $55 daily, up from $50.
• Rangers will receive a $225 annual allowance to purchase boots, up from $200.
• Rangers asked to train new employees will be paid $125 per month for that task, up from $100 per month.