Cowlitz County approves four‑year contract for six correction sergeants after tense questioning

At Tuesday’s meeting of the Cowlitz County Board of Commissioners, the board approved a four‑year collective bargaining agreement covering six correction sergeants represented by Teamsters Local 58.

Human Resources director Jessica Warren presented the settlement, saying it runs from Jan. 1, 2025, through Dec. 31, 2028, and was negotiated after more than 18 months of bargaining and mediation. Warren said the settlement “substantially closed” a compensation gap with comparable counties and described the financial changes the county will incur in the early years of the contract.

Warren told commissioners the contract provides a 22% wage increase in 2025 and raises employer health‑insurance contributions; she summarized staff estimates that the net cost to the county would be about $150,000 annually in 2025 and about $50,000 annually in 2026. The agreement calls for a 5.5% increase in 2026 and 2027–28 cost‑of‑living adjustments tied to the CPI West (June‑to‑June) with a 3% floor and 5% ceiling. It also preserves sergeants’ pay at least 5% higher than the top step of corrections officers and adds four floating holiday hours (bringing the total floating‑holiday bank from 44 to 48 hours).

Warren also described operational and contract language changes: removal of mandatory firearms‑qualification language (with sergeants not firearms‑qualified capped at step three), limits on floating‑holiday usage to eight‑hour increments, updates to forced‑overtime procedures, and changes reflecting state law on disciplinary decisions and certification impacts.

Commissioners pressed staff on the origins of the 22% figure and whether other county contracts would follow. One commissioner who opposed the contract said, “I will be up front, I oppose this thing,” arguing the comparables system is “faulty” and that a 22% increase is unreasonable for Cowlitz County. Warren and Finance Director Shawn Roe responded that comparables and staggered contract cycles — and mid‑contract raises in other jurisdictions — contributed to the disparity and that corrections promotional practices and recruitment dynamics also shaped bargaining positions.

Commissioners asked for basic compensation facts. Staff stated the current base pay for a sergeant is roughly $7,319 per month and that total annualized compensation including medical, holidays and overtime would be near $95,000; staff did not provide an exact per‑employee monthly insurance contribution figure in the transcript. Warren said the six sergeants voted on the contract, though the transcript does not record the percentage approval.

The chair called the roll; the oral record in the transcript captured at least one affirmative response and one recorded opposition. The transcript does not list the full roll call or individual tallies beyond those voice responses. The chair then closed the item.

The contract takes effect per its terms; the board did not attach additional conditions in the meeting. Staff said they had held this contract since 2022 and that closing the compensation gap reduced the county’s exposure to interest arbitration, a process that can be costly if unresolved issues are decided by a neutral arbitrator.

The board moved on after the vote; no public commenters spoke on the contract during the public‑comment period and the meeting adjourned.