The Berrien County Board of Commissioners has approved a new three-year contract with full time employees of the Berrien County Sheriff’s Department represented by the Police Officers Labor Council.
Berrien County Sheriff Chuck Heit tells us the contract provides for an 8% pay increase in 2024, a 6% increase in 2025, and a 5% increase in 2026 for deputies and sergeants. It also reduced the number of salary steps from ten to five years.
The Command Unit, which covers the lieutenants, captains, and the chief deputy will see pay increases as well. Lieutenants will receive an increase of 5.5% above sergeants, captains will receive 4.5% above the lieutenants, and the chief deputy will receive 4.5% over a captain.
There were some other minor changes in contract language, but it was mostly about wages.
Sheriff Heit says, “The men and women at the sheriff’s office work very hard on a daily basis and deserve to be compensated accordingly,” adding this will help with recruitment and retention.
