COLDWATER, MI (WTVB) – The Branch County Board of Commissioners formally approved new three year contract agreements with unions representing District Court and Sheriff’s Department employees during their regular meeting Wednesday.
The contract with the Service Employees International Union, Local 517-M, covers 12 District Court employees. County Administrator Frank Walsh said the most significant modifications include wage increases of four percent in the first year and three percent in the second and third years of the deal.
A total of 31 members of the Sheriff’s Department are covered by the contract agreement with the Police Officers Association of Michigan. The union represents road deputies and corrections officers.
Walsh said the most significant modification is a 21 percent increase in compensation over the next three years including a 15 percent increase in the first year. The raises came about after an internal wage and salary study uncovered a need to get Branch County officers at a more competitive wage.
The same increase in compensation is included in the contract with the Command Officers of Michigan. They represent eight members of the Sheriff’s Department who are Road Sergeants and Correction Sergeants.
Now that the union contracts have been taken care of, Walsh says they will work on deals for the non-union employees.
All of the union agreements begin January 1, 2026.
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