Barnegat Police Contract Negotiations May Be Headed To Arbitration

So what's been happening in the contract negotiations between the Barnegat PBA Local and the township?

The answer is, not much, according to app.com.

The union has been working without a new contract for three years. In that time, former Police Chief Arthur P. Drexler was suspended. The township and Drexler earlier this year reached a settlement in which Drexler retired.

The Barnegat Township Committee last year outsourced all the police dispatcher jobs to Ocean County.

The PBA is asking for a contract similar to the Superior Officers Contract, which included annual pay increases of 1.95 percent and a $10,000 cap on healthcare expenses.

“We’re not asking for anything extraordinary,” said Patrolman Chris Ebert, a member of the negotiations team. “We’re asking the committee to be fair and provide us with a fair contract.”

Both sides have accused the other of stalling during negotiations.

Committeeman Alfonso Cirulli said he saw a glimmer of hope on reaching a settlement last month.
“The first day it looked good, but then the second day we’re back to square one,” he said.
Committeeman Alfonso Cirulli said at a recent meeting the PBA’s contract demands are not “economically sustainable.”

“Over the years, our financial situation has changed,” he said. “We’d like to give them what they want, but these salaries can’t keep going up and up. We have to draw the line somewhere.”

Ebert disputes the committee’s negotiating team that the money isn’t there.“Three officers left and the chief (Arthur Drexler) retired,” he said. “That’s saving about $700,000 this year and there will be more savings as more officers leave. We’re going to be losing officers because of this situation. I can’t blame them for not wanting to work in this type of atmosphere. It’s a shame because we’re probably going to lose a lot of good people.”

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Image: Patch file photo.