A 40-page labor agreement approved by the Oxford Village Council last week gives the unionized, full-time police officers a 12 percent pay raise over the next three years, but it also requires them to gradually contribute more and more toward their health insurance and retirement benefits.

“I worked on (negotiating) a couple (of contracts) prior to this one . . . and this one is, by far, the most fiscally responsible,” said Police Officer Clint Ascroft, who serves as union steward. “(The village is) being smart about the money and they’re treating us well . . . It’s a good deal for the officers.”

The new contract with the Police Officers Labor Council (POLC) takes effect on July 1, 2017 and expires on June 30, 2020.

For agreeing to the new contract, each union member receives a $1,000 signing bonus.

“I think both sides understood the climate and what needed to be done,” said Ascroft, who started as a part-time officer in 2002 and was promoted to full-time in 2005. “There wasn’t a lot that we didn’t see eye to eye on.”

Under the new contract, the full-time officers will receive 4 percent pay increases on July 1 of 2017, 2018 and 2019.

The police department currently employs three full-time officers, including Acting Chief Mike Solwold, who’s still part of the union. Should he take over as chief on a permanent basis, Solwold would get a separate contract and no longer be a union member. In that event, the village would hire another full-time officer to replace him.

and what needed to be done,” said Ascroft, who started as a part-time officer in 2002 and was promoted to full-time in 2005. “There wasn’t a lot that we didn’t see eye to eye on.”

Under the new contract, the full-time officers will receive 4 percent pay increases on July 1 of 2017, 2018 and 2019.

The police department currently employs three full-time officers, including Acting Chief Mike Solwold, who’s still part of the union. Should he take over as chief on a permanent basis, Solwold would get a separate contract and no longer be a union member. In that event, the village would hire another full-time officer to replace him.

Right now, the starting hourly wage for a village patrol officer is $16.41 and it tops out at $23.99, according to former village Manager Joe Young.

Under the new contract, the starting wage will be $18.11 per hour as of July 1. That’s after the current $16.41 per hour is increased by $1, then increased again by 4 percent. The top pay for officers who have been with the department for four or more years will increase to $24.95 per hour on July 1.

By July 1, 2019, the starting hourly wage for a full-time patrol officer will be $19.58 and the top rate will be $26.99, under the contract.

Ascroft explained this pay bump is “much needed” because of previous wage concessions the union agreed to in an effort to help the village stay afloat back when the economy tanked and property tax revenues fell sharply.

“We gave a lot back in good faith and they paid it forward (with these pay raises) now that the times are getting a little bit better,” he said.

Village officers’ wages are “still behind” compared to similar departments in southeast Michigan, according to Ascroft, but this new contract puts them “on track” to closing that gap.

Officers will begin paying more for their health insurance. Currently, they all contribute $25 per month for single-person, two-person and family coverage.

The new contract calls for them to begin paying $50 per month on July 1. From then on, the monthly employee contribution will increase by $25 annually every July 1 until it reaches $100 per month for single-person and two-person coverage and $150 for family coverage.

New employees hired after Jan. 1, 2017 will contribute $100 per month for single and two-person coverage and $150 for family coverage, under the contract.

Officers will also contribute more to their retirement under the new contract.

Existing employees who currently contribute a half-percent of their pretax pay to their pension, under the Michigan Municipal Employees Retirement System (MERS), will see that rate rise by a half-percent annually beginning July 1. The rate will continue to increase until it reaches 5 percent on July 1, 2025.

Employees hired after July 1, 2012 are required to contribute 5 percent of their pay toward their pension.

Employees hired after Jan. 1, 2017 will be provided retirement benefits under one of three types of plans that will replace the MERS defined benefit retirement program. Under this, contributions from the village will be limited to 10 percent of the employee’s base hourly rate on a monthly basis. Employee contributions to the plan selected must be at least 5 percent, but can be no higher than 10 percent.

When it comes to contract negotiations, Ascroft said he was involved in “some tooth-pullers in the beginning,” but this round went quite smoothly.

“We made some compromises and they made some compromises and we kind of met in the middle,” he said.

Ascroft gave “special thanks” and credit to village attorney Bob Davis, Young and Hal Telling, POLC labor representative.