County Police Union Reportedly Rejects Layoff Plan — By 1 Vote

BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — The Bergen County Bureau of Police Services union voted down a deal Tuesday that would have stopped proposed layoffs and demotions from occurring by dissolving the bureau and bringing officers over to the county Sheriff's Office.

Bureau police union head Chris Weston confirmed to NorthJersey.com that members voted the deal down by just one vote — 36 voted against it while just 35 voted in favor of it.

Bergen County Sheriff Michael Saudino proposed the layoff plan that would eliminate 26 positions and demote another 11 officers with the former Bergen County Police Department.

The deal would have let 73 of the bureau's officers join the sheriff officers' union at the same seniority levels and future salary raises, NorthJersey.com reported.

The deal, proposed last week by the Sheriff’s Office, would have let the bureau’s 73 officers join the sheriff’s officers’ union at roughly the same seniority for future pay raises. But accepting the agreement would mean significant pay cuts, and force bureau officers to undergo a year-long training period for “new” sheriff’s officers, despite their years of service as county police.

New state requirements and a budget cap are the reasons for the layoffs, despite County Executive James Tedesco stating in 2015 that the plan would not reduce the department via layoffs, according to NJ.com.

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