Sheriff to pay more for ‘difficult’ shifts and special assignments

Supervisors acknowledge impact to ‘quality family time’

Employees of the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office who work the afternoon and night shifts will now get extra pay.

The Board of Supervisors on Monday approved a shift differential and specialty assignment pay plans, effective Feb. 5.

In a staff report, Sheriff Leon Wilmot noted that many of his employees are required to work outside the normal business hours of 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. However, the afternoon and night shifts are “less desirable” for employees as it takes away quality time with family.

Therefore, the Sheriff’s Office proposed – and received – that the afternoon shift earn an additional 75-cents an hour and the night shift an additional 50-cents an hour.

Additionally, employees assigned to specialty assignments, such as field training officers and those working with booking, Criminal Investigation Bureau, Task Force Unit and Specialty Management Unit, will receive an additional $1.50 an hour.

Wilmot pointed out that employees assigned to a specialty assignment are required to have additional knowledge, skills, abilities, certifications and/or clearances.

The extra pay is estimated to cost $304,288 this fiscal year, which ends June 30. A full fiscal year is expected to cost $697,538. The Sheriff’s Office will offset the extra pay through salary savings identified for this fiscal year and will submit a request for the extra pay in next year’s budget.

During discussion, Supervisor Tony Reyes asked whether the extra pay would apply only to current employees or whether new hires would also get the shift pay differential.

Captain Jason Amon confirmed that the incentive pay program will help the Sheriff’s Office to be competitive in both recruiting and retaining skilled employees. He explained that a Human Resources survey of other agencies throughout the county and surrounding counties indicated a lot of the agencies are offering extra pay for certain shifts.

“Yes, it is going to be used for recruitment and retention,” Amon said. “We feel it’s easier to retain our current personnel and recruit new up-and-coming personnel if we are giving them incentives to work the shifts that nobody wants to work or do the specialized areas above and beyond what their normal duties as a deputy is.”

Reyes said he was happy to acknowledge that certain shifts are harder than others. “Midnight shift, afternoon shift that lasts until midnight certainly tends to be a little hard on the family.”

He also noted that while the trend is to work more at home, this is not an option for sheriff deputies and detention officers.

“This is a very, very intensive, very, very difficult job that you do and anything we can (do to make) a job easier or to make it easier for you guys to hire people or retain people, we’ll be glad to do,” Reyes added.

In other action, the supervisors approved the following precinct committeemen appointments as recommended by the Yuma County Republican Party, for terms that will expire on Oct. 1, 2024:

Precinct 4: Randal Philip Mcclure Jr.

Precinct 9: Barry D. Todd

Precinct 24: Donald Forrest Bunker and Marilla Clare Willis

Precinct 25: Patricia Sue Spencer Precinct 34: Kelly Daniel Milner