Side letter of agreement increases hourly base rate for county correctional positions

The Lassen County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved ratifying and authorizing the chairman to sign a side letter of agreement between the county and the Lassen County Peace Officers Association that includes a base hourly rate increase for several correctional positions.

“The Peace Officers Association and county of Lassen recognize that there has been significant difficulty in recruiting and retaining qualified applicants for the positions within the peace officers association. This has caused staffing shortages, loss of productivity, necessary overtime work and morale issues within the association members,” read the agreement.

Through the agreement, all incumbents within the union shall be moved from the POA-B salary schedule into the identical range and step in the POA-A salary schedule. For example, an employee at the POA-B range 25, step 1 at an hourly rate of $27.7355 would be increased to a POA-A salary schedule at a range 25, step 1, with an hourly rate of $29.3680.

The change shall be effective beginning the first full pay period after May 1.

The supervisors asked Lassen County Sheriff’s Office Captain John McGarva if he approved of the agreement, to which he replied, ” I would put my seal of approval behind it.”