Durham blunts police workers' plea

Gathering at city council meeting to demand higher pay makes its point but is cut short by order to clear overcrowded room

DURHAM -- It took less than five minutes for more than 200 Durham police employees and their families to make their point at Monday's city council meeting.

Silently protesting for higher pay, they marched to the council chambers in a line that stretched from the City Hall entrance to Roxboro Street. They filled every seat -- after they made room for a visiting Cub Scout troop -- and stood along the walls until council members took their seats just after 7 p.m.

Mayor Bill Bell declared that the packed room was in violation of fire codes. Durham Fire Chief Brice Pagan asked those standing to leave, and about 100 people, including some who were scheduled to speak, quietly left the room.

Durham officers and firefighters made a similar effort at a May council meeting, where it was revealed that city salaries are as much as 22 percent below the market average, according to Dallas-based Waters Consulting Group. The next month, council members voted 4-3 to raise starting police salaries from $33,069 to $37,000 and raise pay for experienced officers by more than $4,000. But estimates show it would take $9.5 million over the next few years to bring those salaries fully in line.

Durham patrol officers, on average, make just over $43,000, while officers in Cary and Garner start at about $38,000. Raleigh cops average just over $48,000.

In January, Raleigh Police Chief Harry Dolan called for increasing his department's starting salary and starting a lateral-entry program for experienced officers from other departments. Raleigh lost 79 officers last year, including 13 who went to other law enforcement agencies. For years, the Raleigh Police Protective Association has called for a stipend for officers with college degrees, something Durham already has.

The three groups leading the effort -- the local chapters of the state Police Benevolent Association, the Fraternal Order of Police and the N.C. Sheriffs Police Alliance -- believe low pay is one of the main reasons officers are leaving the Durham department.

About 100 Durham officers have left in the past two years, including 27 who have gone to other agencies, according to the Durham Police Department.

In recent weeks, patrol staffing has ranged from 54 percent to 70 percent while calls for service have increased, according to the police groups. They believe the pay scale also has contributed to fewer recruits; the current police academy has only 14 recruits filling 40 available slots.

While starting pay has increased over the years, salaries for experienced officers has not been proportionately increased, according to the groups. Some veteran officers, regardless of rank, make less than younger officers.

Durham officers are often sought out by other agencies because the department requires more than 200 hours training above what the state requires and have valuable experience working in an urban environment.

Robert Gaddy, vice-president of the local FOP, thought the show of force was effective but wanted to be heard during the meeting.

"The main thing is we want to bring it to the attention to the city council and citizens that our guys are understaffed, we're overworked and we asked the mayor for two minutes to be heard on this and he refused," he said.

Later in the meeting, Bell said he talked with PBA President David Addison about the issue. He advised Addison to follow a procedure that includes first going through the police chief and then the city manager.

"I hope other city employees throughout the city follow that process," he said.

Some Durham city council members expressed dismay over Monday's effort.

"We need to address these issues in a forceful and fair manner, but salary and pay increase is not on the agenda tonight," city councilman Eugene Brown said. "They could cause more harm than good."

Addison said he wants a city committee to revisit police pay. Addison believes city council will eventually address the issue, which he hopes will be reflected in the 2009-10 budget.

"We're dedicated to this cause," he said. "We're not going to turn and walk away. City council eventually has to acknowledge our issues."