(BCN) -- The BART Board of Directors unanimously approved a labor agreement on Thursday that will increase police officer salaries by 19 percent in an attempt to fill 28 vacant positions and put officer salaries on par with neighboring agencies.
The cost of these raises, agreed to by the BART Board of Directors and the BART Police Officers Association, will total around $8.54 million, according to a BART press release. These added expenses come as BART faces a $93 million budget deficit in 2025 and has warned of service cuts and layoffs without additional funding.
BART police officer pay was found to be around 20 percent lower than other regional police agencies and the agency has struggled to fill vacancies in recent years. With these pay increases, the BART Police Department looks to spend less on overtime pay, increase hiring and retention as well as recruit more experienced officers from other departments.
This contract also sets a new "minimum presence requirement" for police officers on trains. Under the new agreement, 50 percent of on-duty patrol staff must be assigned to ride trains. BART riders can expect to see an 60 percent increase in police presence during the mornings and 70 percent during the evening.
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A 2022 survey conducted by BART found that police presence was one of the top priorities for riders, said David Coleman, BART's director of labor negotiations.
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