by Rachel Gordon

San Francisco Chronicle

June 24, 2010

The San Francisco Police Officers Association has ratified a package of cost-cutting labor concessions, with members voting 64 percent in favor, union president Gary Delagnes said today.

That leaves Transport Workers Union Local 250-A, which represents Muni operators, as the only city employees' union to reject proposed givebacks.

In all, the labor concessions agreed to by city employees will amount to $230 million in savings over the next two years. They came as the city faced a projected $522 million deficit earlier this year that had to be erased to help balance the $6.5 billion budget for the new fiscal year that starts July 1.

San Francisco police are still set to receive a 4 percent raise July 1, but they're taking six unpaid furlough days this year, which effectively will reduce their pay increase to 1.3 percent, Delagnes said.

Over the next two years, the police concessions will amount to 8 percent savings through a combination of raise deferrals, unpaid floating holidays, freezing the annual wellness program that offers pay incentives for not calling in sick, and reducing the pay perk for working nights, according to a memo prepared by Martin Gran, employee relations director for the Department of Human Resources.

Delagnes said it was hard to ask his members to give back, ''but at the same time you don't want to put yourself on an island with the likes of Muni, where the public turns against you.'' He added, however, that the rank-and-file officers his union represents don't want the city coming back any time soon asking for more.

Mayor Gavin Newsom's administration lauded the police union for ratifying the deal. ''It's a credit to the POA that they are helping to protect public safety and save police officer jobs,'' said Tony Winnicker, spokesman for the mayor.