Manhattan Beach, Police Report Progress in Talks

Negotiators for the Manhattan Beach Police Assn. and the city are hoping to iron out their differences when they meet today for more talks about a new contract for the city’s 54 police officers and sergeants.

The city and the union say they agree on most provisions in the new three-year contract except for one clause. Police officers would like to be able to adjust their salary in the second year of the contract if their pay scales aren’t as high as officers in 10 other cities in a comparable market area.

“We’re not far apart,” City Manager Geoff Dolan said. “I think the [City] Council has agreed they want to pay the officers what the other cities pay.”

The salaries for Manhattan Beach patrol officers rank eighth among 11 area cities. They earn less than officers in Beverly Hills, Newport Beach, Santa Monica, Culver City, Inglewood, Redondo Beach and Torrance and more than those in Hermosa Beach, Hawthorne and El Segundo. The top salary for a Manhattan Beach police officer is $48,468 a year, compared to $56,568 in Santa Monica.

The city and the union have agreed that in the first year of the contract, patrol officers should get a 7% raise and sergeants an 8% raise. In the second year, the police officers want a 3% raise with a market adjustment in the middle of the year if salaries aren’t on the same level as the 10 other cities. In the third year, officers and sergeants would receive a 3% to 5% raise.

City officials calculate that the new contract will cost Manhattan Beach an additional $280,000 its first year. Each 1% raise would add $40,000, Dolan said.