Salisbury Police Get Substantial Pay Raises After Bargaining Rights Cut

Salisbury, MD - The Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #111 has released a press release after significant pay raises were approved for Salisbury Police Department officers. This coming the same week where the police department saw their collective bargaining and binding arbitration rights eliminated.

The two decisions came together after weeks of back and forth between city leadership and the police union over officer compensation and labor rights. For the FOP, it was a mixed result.

On the pay side, the union said it was grateful. The approved salary increases raised starting pay for new officers and improved wages across the department's entire pay scale. The FOP said the raises bring Salisbury officers more in line with what other law enforcement agencies in the region are paying.

"We are grateful that the Council recognized the urgent need to address officer compensation to prevent a potential mass exodus of experienced personnel from the Salisbury Police Department," the FOP stated in a press release issued Friday morning.

The union called the raises long overdue. Officers had been falling behind neighboring agencies in pay, raising concerns about the department's ability to recruit new officers and hold onto the ones it already had.

But the pay increase came at a cost. The Council, citing financial concerns, moved to dissolve the officers' collective bargaining and binding arbitration rights. Those rights had given officers a formal process to negotiate their wages and working conditions with the city.

The FOP said it was disappointed by that decision but stopped short of pushing back hard against it.

"While we are disappointed to see those rights dissolved, the FOP remains committed to maintaining a professional and constructive relationship with city leadership moving forward," the union stated.

The FOP said it respects the City Charter and the process the Council used to make these decisions. The union left the door open for future negotiations, saying it hopes to work with city officials if collective bargaining is ever offered again.

For now, Salisbury officers are set to see more money in their paychecks. Whether they will ever have a formal seat at the table to negotiate for themselves again in the future, remains an unanswered question.