County staff asked the Clallam County Board of Commissioners on Sept. 22 to prepare to ratify a new collective bargaining agreement for patrol deputies after more than a year of bargaining and a change in representation.

The county
dministrator and labor negotiators said the deal includes a one-time, current-year increase aimed at bringing wages into the top half — and closer to the top third — of six comparable counties, followed by 2026 and 2027 cost-of-living adjustments split as 1.5% Jan. 1 and 1.5% July 1 in each year.

County Administrator Todd (identified in the meeting as "the administrator") said the county
imed to position itself defensibly in case interest arbitration is necessary and that comparables include Lewis, Island, Mason, Grays Harbor and Jefferson counties. "Our goal is always to be in the upper third, definitely, in the upper half," he said. Rebecca, a county negotiator, described the package as including an initial "22% increase" to reach competitive standing and said the contract runs through 2027.

The negotiators told commissioners they also pursued operational language changes and nonwage adjustments rather than larger recurring pay increases. Rebecca said the contract decreases floating-holiday hours from a previously negotiated 150 hours to 44 hours per year, and adjusts vacation accrual rules to better align with 11-hour shift patterns used by many patrol deputies. She also described an insurance contribution approach that sets a flat monthly county contribution with an annual $50-per-month increase instead of the prior automatic premium-reconciliation method.

Commissioners asked about the bargaining timeline and recruitment pressures. Rebecca said the prior contract expired June 30, 2024, bargaining began in September 2024, and the parties have been negotiating nearly a year. Todd noted that neighboring Jefferson County recently ratified a substantial increase and that losing deputies to Jefferson factored into the county ecision to seek a competitive placement among comparables. "If you're ranked at number 2, you're ranked at number 2 or any other position," Todd said, explaining the arbitration risk if the county were to fall behind comparables.

No formal vote occurred during the work session. Staff said the agreement has been ratified by the bargaining unit's internal processes and that they will present the contract for formal ratification at the commissioners' regular meeting next Tuesday. Commissioners expressed appreciation for the work and for operational language improvements, but also questioned the size of the initial increase and emphasized fairness and staff retention as drivers of the proposal.

Background and next steps: negotiators said the patrol deputies contract was negotiated as an interest arbitration unit under Washington state rules; if bargaining hits an impasse, either side may request arbitration and an arbitrator would issue a binding decision. Staff said the contract covers wages and nonwage economics and extends through 2027; the Board will consider ratification at the regular session one week after the work session.