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West Miami ratifies police contract, raises starting pay to $60,000
Summary
The City of West Miami Commission unanimously approved a three-year contract with the South Florida Police Benevolent Association that raises the department's starting salary from $48,000 to $60,000 and makes other pay-and-benefit changes.
The City of West Miami Commission on Feb. 12 voted 5-0 to ratify a resolution approving a contract between the City of West Miami and the South Florida Police Benevolent Association covering Oct. 1, 2025 through Sept. 30, 2028.
The contract, sponsored by the administration and presented at the Feb. 12 meeting, raised the police department's starting salary and adjusted several pay and leave provisions intended to aid recruitment and retention. City officials discussed funding the increases for three fiscal years and said the city manager is authorized to execute the agreement.
Why it matters: Commissioners and union leaders said the package is aimed at reducing turnover and improving public safety by keeping officers in West Miami rather than losing them to neighboring jurisdictions. The city manager told the commission that the city's starting pay had been "48,000," and said, "we were paying them so low" before the change; he added the city had been a "revolving door" for officers. PBA President Stedman Saul thanked the commission and said, "I just wanna say thank you ... for putting public safety front and center." (Both quotes are from the Feb. 12 meeting.)
Key contract provisions discussed at the meeting: the manager reported the city will raise starting pay from $48,000 to $60,000; reduce the sick-leave payout cap from 480 to 400 hours; adopt structured step increases tied to length of service; reduce some merit-based step increases in years two and three to 4%; add differential pay for night and hazardous work; and increase off-duty rates for officers and the city. The manager described those changes as "substantial strides" toward parity with neighboring agencies.
The PBA president, Stedman Saul, addressed commissioners and residents at the meeting and thanked the city for what he called a commitment to public safety. Commissioners praised the speed of negotiations and the near-unanimous support from officers during bargaining.
The resolution passed by roll call 5-0. The manager and PBA representatives said a formal signing ceremony will be scheduled at a later date.
