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City rejects proposal to add new JSO hires to state pension plan

By Jenna Bourne and Action News Jax
By Jenna Bourne and Action News Jax

The city budget calls for dozens of new Jacksonville officers next year, but will they get a pension or not?

That was a central question during collective bargaining negotiations between the Fraternal Order of Police and the city of Jacksonville on Wednesday.

The gridlock comes the day after city negotiations with the Jacksonville Association of Firefighters also ended at an impasse.

“They want us–police and corrections–to shoulder all the risk,” said Jacksonville Fraternal Order of Police President Steve Zona.

Like the firefighters union did on Tuesday, the FOP proposed putting all its new hires on the state-run Florida Retirement System.

Like Tuesday, city negotiators rejected it, wanting to put new hires on a city-run defined contribution program, like a 401(k), instead.

“The stresses of this job, the physical demands of this job, you see it all the time. The risk we put on the line every day for the community that we love,” said Zona.

Mayor Lenny Curry was not there for Tuesday or Wednesday’s negotiations, but told Action News Jax at his office on Tuesday that the state-run pension plan is too risky for city taxpayers.

“We would be ceding control of our costs to the state, which takes our financial future out of our control,” said Curry.

Zona was unhappy that Curry did not come to Wednesday’s meeting.

“If he wants to talk to us, I would suggest he speaks to us at the negotiation table,” said Zona.

JSO officers have not had a raise in eight years.

The city originally came to the table with no wage increases, but later changed that to a combined 16 percent wage increase over the next four fiscal years.

The FOP proposed a 42 percent wage increase over the next four fiscal years, including retroactive raises dating back to fiscal year 2014.

Cox Media Group

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