Denver deputy sheriffs will receive a 14 percent pay raise over the next three years, an arbitrator has ruled.
The arbitrator’s decision resolved an impasse over wages and other issues between the administration of Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper and the union representing the deputies.
The arbitrator determined that the deputies should receive a five percent salary increase in 2008, a 4.5 percent salary increase in 2009 and a 4.5 percent increase in 2010.
The arbitrator sided with the union on two issues and with the administration on nine other disputed issues.
The arbitration decision is binding.
“The arbitration process worked exactly as it’s intended to,” said Sue Cobb, a spokeswoman for Hickenlooper. “The parties couldn’t agree, and so you have an objective third party that in this case accepted elements of each proposal and avoided a strike or walk-off, which certainly wouldn’t have been in the best interest of our community.”
Christopher N. Osher: 303-954-1747 or cosher@denverpost.com
