Clallam County, patrol deputies reach multi-year contract; board approves agreement

The Clallam County Board of Commissioners approved Sept. 30 a collective bargaining agreement with the Clallam County Deputy Sheriffs Guild covering patrol deputies. County staff said the agreement was to be ratified on Oct. 1 and will run through Dec. 31, 2027.

County negotiators said the contract aligns benefit packages, accruals and floating-holiday rules with other county employee groups and conforms with comparative pay requirements used in interest arbitration: the county compares itself to six peer counties to remain competitive. "We do need to we're required to be, similar or competitive with other comparable counties...Our goal is always to approach these to get in the top third or at least the top half," a staff presentation said.

Commissioners thanked staff and bargaining partners for reaching agreement. One commissioner moved to approve the agreement; the motion passed unanimously.

The board said the contract should help both retain existing law-enforcement officers and recruit new ones, a stated county priority amid prior staffing challenges discussed elsewhere in the meeting.