Cranbury Township Committee Approves Police Contract

Cranbury police officers will receive a seven and a half percent raise over the next five years according to the new 2012 contract the Township Committee passed Monday.

The new contract agreement will save the township $53,000 since Cranbury did not have to go to arbitration and pay legal fees, said committee member Jay Taylor, who serves as township police liaison. The last contract, which took three years to settle, went into arbitration and the township spent $56,000 in legal expenses. 

All 16 officers on the force will receive a raise of an average of a one and a half percent each year under the new contract, Taylor said.

The 2008-2011 contract, which expires Dec. 31, called for a 12 percent increase over four years, said Sergeant Ryan Dworzanski, local president of the Fraternal Order of Police president. 

“The union realizes the current sign of the times and we were able to get something done right away. It was fair and equitable for both sides. It shows that both sides should be commended for coming to the bargaining table,” Dworzanski said.

Taylor agreed saying the new contract is reasonable and saves taxpayers money.

“I think this a very fair contract,” Taylor said. “When I look at this contract it is very positive. David Cook [a township committee member] and I represented the township’s interest and the FOP represented the town’s interest as well.”

The annual starting salary for a police officer in Cranbury is currently $45,948 and the highest-earning officer receives $94,508, Dworzanski said.

The township committee also approved a $110,000 one-year contract with Hightstown to continue using its police and emergency dispatch system, saving the township $40,000.

“This has been a very, very long term relationship between Hightstown and Cranbury and there’s truly a lot of respect between the two,” said Hightstown Mayor Steven Kirson.

The 2012 Cranbury Police Business Plan calls for increased communication between Police Chief Rickey Varga and the township committee, Taylor said. Taylor and Varga will speak on a weekly basis about police allocation, the budget issues and management of the township and its police department.

“Now we are making educated decisions on where we are going and we are better allocating the budget,” Taylor said. “Chief Varga has been fantastic with communication and this will help us better manage the department. The way it works now is that the chief informs the town of shift coverage. It helps understand man hours and helps control man hours.”