CARIBOU, Maine — Caribou City Council approved renewed labor contracts for their police and fire departments following an executive session on Jan. 14.
City Manager Dennis Marker briefly described some aspects of these contracts during a Jan. 28 council meeting.
A key element of the new contracts is that they are now effective for one year as opposed to two.
Marker said the police contract includes a significant wage increase for first-year employees with the intention of enticing more individuals to join the department.
“There’s not as much of an increase for those who have more than 20 years in the department,” said Marker, “but it’s significant for those with fewer years. The benefits such as the standard health policy, vacation time and sick leave will stay the same.”
A copy of the agreement between the New England Police Benevolent Association Local 605 and the city is available via the city of Caribou website, and indicates that base pay for starting employees will move from $638.48 a week to $710 a week.
Marker concluded that city administration and council reached a consensus to make these positions even more attractive through these agreements.
According to the minutes from the Jan. 14 meeting, six councilors voted to approve the police contract with councilor Hugh Kirkpatrick opposed. All councilors came out in favor of approving the fire department memorandum of understanding, which includes a 2 percent increase in wages.
A memo written by Marker in the council packet stated that the increase will not impact the budget as “it was included in the 2019 expense budget.”
