The city employees all deserved pay increases for way too many years; they had labored while their paychecks did not buy as much as they used to. The pension had gotten worse, as have many other benefits that they used to enjoy.
Today, John Whitmire gave the police a large pay increase; let us hope that it results in an increase in the number of police officers on the street. For nearly 25 years, the number of police officers has remained static as the population of Houston has increased by over half a million.
I hope the money that they are taking from the county comes through. Otherwise, he may have put Houston in a very bad position financially.
John Whitmire stated this today. He does have a way of embellishing things. Is all of Houston applauding?
Houston Mayor John Whitmire said Houstonians “ought to be excited” about the contract, and that residents are applauding it. With the Republican National Convention and The World Cup coming up – and a population of 2.3 million, on top of an estimated 700,000 who come to work in the city each day, Whitmire said a well-staffed police department is vital to public safety.
“[President of the Houston Police Officer’s Union Doug Griffith] knew I had another responsibility to be fair to the taxpayers of Houston,” Whitmire said. “I’ve listened to them. They are applauding today because we are putting their tax dollars where they would put them as well.”
Under the proposed deal, officers will receive 10% raises in July, and then 8% raises in 2026, 6% raises in both 2027 and 2028 and 6.5% raises in 2029, according to documents shown to the Chronicle.
The tentative agreement will also give officers the opportunity to reduce any suspensions of three days or less down to discipline without a suspension and give those suspended five days or less the opportunity to use up to 10 days. Officers will only be orally interrogated by internal affairs if criminal activity is suspected, records show.
Officers who are called to court will also receive a minimum four hours of overtime, compared to the existing two-hour minimum, records show.
