Deputy Sheriffs Association lays out bargaining priorities to address recruitment and retention

The Deputy Sheriffs Association presented its bargaining priorities to the Board of Supervisors Tuesday evening, urging a package of changes aimed at improving recruitment, retention and workforce stability for the county's sheriff's office.

"The 112 men and women of the deputy sheriff's association aren't just employees. They're the backbone of the public safety for Shasta County," Sergeant Jake Duncan, the association's vice president, told the board. He framed the proposals as fiscally responsible alternatives to a across-the-board pay increase and said the union was willing to trade immediate raises for structural changes that reduce overtime and improve scheduling flexibility.

Key proposals included increasing the compensatory-time cap from 120 to 160 hours, adjusting overtime calculations so all paid leave counts toward overtime eligibility (bringing the county's calculation into alignment with neighboring agencies), a 5% top-step adjustment for sergeants and supervisory investigators with an associated supervisory incentive, specialty-assignment pay for SWAT, dive, bomb technician and drone teams, and a holiday-pay fix for detectives on 10-hour schedules so they are not required to use personal leave for an employer-directed day off.

The union said its cost estimates are based on county figures and that the requested package would be less expensive than the county's current proposal while addressing compaction between top-step deputies and sergeants. "We're asking to be treated similarly to other safety units in the region," Duncan said, citing recruitment challenges and compaction numbers between ranks.

County staff and negotiators will continue bargaining; no contractual settlement was announced at the meeting.