Maximum annual salary of a “top grade” officer in Pennington with both an EMT and a bachelor’s degree is about $55,000
By John Tredrea, Staff Writer
A three-year contract with the borough’s Police Department that includes a 4.55 percent pay increase each year was approved 5-0 by the Pennington Borough Council on Monday night.
The three-year pact is retroactive to Jan. 1.
The borough and the Police Department reached agreement on the contract with the aid of a state-appointed mediator. No fee was charged for the mediation service.
At Monday night’s meeting, Weed Tucker, the councilman assigned to the area of public safety, said the raises in the contract are as high as they are “in recognition of the fact” that the Pennington police force is the lowest paid in the county.
Just under one square mile, Pennington is the smallest town in Mercer County except for Hopewell Borough, which is ¾ of a square mile. Hopewell disbanded its police force in the early 1980s and has been covered by the Hopewell Township Police Department since then.
Pennington has six uniformed officers and a paid police director.
Borough Administrator Eugene Dunworth said other highlights of the new contract include:
— A $2,500 increase in pay in 2007 for an officer with an EMT (emergency medical technician) certificate. The increase will be $3,000 in 2008 and 2009.
— Officers also will get a pay increase for obtaining a bachelor’s degree: $1,000 this year, $1,200 in 2008 and $1,400 in 2009. Officers also will get a $500 stipend in any year they use no sick days.
— There is no uniform allowance for officers in the contract. “The borough will provide uniforms as needed from the borough budget,” Mr. Dunworth said.
Even with the raises, the top pay a Pennington officer can earn is much less than in surrounding towns. Borough Councilman Joseph Lawver noted, for example, that the maximum annual salary of a “top grade” officer in Pennington with both an EMT and a bachelor’s degree is about $55,000.
In Hopewell Township, a patrol officer with the same credentials can make as much as $80,000, Mr. Lawver said. Township superior officers, which includes two lieutenants and a chief, make more than that.
ALSO Monday night, the council voted to introduce an ordinance calling for police pay increases for special duty, from $40 per hour to $55 next year, $65 in 2009 and $75 per hour in 2010. Officers must be hired for a minimum of four hours under the proposed measure.