Merced County reaches tentative agreement on 1-year contract with deputy sheriff’s

Andrew Kuhn
·4 min read

The County of Merced and the Merced County Deputy Sheriff’s Association have reached a tentative agreement on a new contract that will be in place for one year.

According to Deputy Sheriff’s Association President Roberto Torres, the county and the DSA have agreed on a one-year contract that includes a 10% base pay increase as well as a 10% increase to the medical cap and increases to law enrichment credential certification. The agreement comes after the DSA rejected the county’s offer of an 8% wage increase and 10% increase to healthcare caps in September of 2023.

The new contract for the deputy sheriffs, dispatches and coroners will be in place from July 1, 2024 through June 31, 2025.

Merced County Sheriff Vern Warnke has been critical of the county and the CEO’s office over its handling of the county budget.

For months, Warnke attended board of supervisors meetings and took to social media to sound the alarm about challenges the sheriff’s office faces in terms of retaining and recruiting deputies who can earn greater pay working for surrounding agencies.

Last fall, Warnke warned the board last fall that the sheriff’s office was down 18 deputies, and that 18 other deputies had applied to other agencies.

In March, the Merced County Sheriff’s Office launched an online reporting system for non-violent crimes as decreasing staffing levels has made it difficult for deputies to respond to calls. Warnke said he believes the county should have taken action when he previously brought his concerns to the county.

“I applaud the county at this particular point doing what they’re doing to try and do what they can with the resources they’ve got, but they still have some tough choices to make,” said Warnke.

Warnke said the contract is something deputies deserve, especially after having to work through the pandemic as well as putting their lives on the line every day.

“I believe all county employees deserve better in the way of the pension and benefit package – that’s a given – but for them to put the same priority on building a park as to pay for a deputy, that doesn’t make sense to me.”

Warnke said he is unsure if the new one year contract will be enough to convince deputies to stay in the county or to attract additional deputies.

“I do know that the county, the CEO’s office, they’re going to have to make cuts in other places I know that to make sure we get pay for the deputies, ” Warnke said. “So I do know that that’s something they’re going to face and for that I applaud them to do this, I’m just hoping and praying that it’s not too late.”

Concerns remain over contract

The medical continues to be an issue not only for the DSA but for other labor unions that will negotiate with the county, according to Torres.

“The medical is still a big issue and we continue to work with the county to address that and correct that for our members,” said Torres.

Torres said the terms were presented to DSA members and the decision was made based off of a majority vote.

“The majority who voted in favor of the contract are happy, but still they feel that there’s still a lot of work that needs to be done as far as it comes to the medical,” said Torres.

Torres said the median pay is comparable to surrounding counties and he believes Merced County and the DSA working together and coming to a tentative agreement will hopefully help to move forward over the next year and address other issues such as the healthcare cap.

According to Torres, the agreement doesn’t solve the association’s concerns over recruitment and retention of employees but it is a step in the right direction. When a surrounding agency hires a deputy from Merced County, that agency is getting a peace officer who is essentially plug-and-play, after the the County of Merced invests time and money into that individual, according to Torres.

“I think that the agreement that was reached between the county and the DSA is a step in the right direction to address the retention which would also address the recruitment part of that equation,” Torres said.

According to Torres, the DSA will continue to work with the county as there are still steps that need to be taken to address issues such as the medical and other compensation packages.

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