Jenkintown Borough, Police Ink Labor Agreement
Jenkintown residents who packed meetings to express their outrage have arrested efforts to disband the borough’s police department.
Now that the borough council has approved a new contract with its police union, home-grown law enforcement will likely continue. Previously, the council gave serious consideration to proposals to outsource the department to neighboring Abington, or to deploy the state police.
The main issue was the department’s cost.
Borough Manager George Locke said the new agreement “and associated staff reduction in line with the (consultants) Smeal & DCED reports reduced the per capita cost of the (police department) down to $410 per capita from $550 per capita, putting the borough in a much better place for our taxpayers’ receiving services as well as possible longevity of the Borough Police Department.”
“There are currently no active discussions about contracting for law enforcement services but we will always continue to look at any opportunities to provide the best services at the best price for our community,” Mayor Gabriel Lerman said.
Lifelong Jenkintown resident and local lawyer Joseph Stanton was pleased.
Stanton called the proposal to disband the Jenkintown Police Department a “serious mistake.” He believes that the distance between some of the boroughs’ residents and the Abington Police Department would be too far during an emergency “when seconds matter.”
He recalled the time crossing guard Linda Bennett delivered a baby in a car at Old York Road and West Avenue.
And the aid goes both ways, Stanton added. Jenkintown officers and firefighters turned out to help with the massive fire at SPS Technologies on the Abington-Jenkintown border.
“I heard the explosion in my office,” said Stanton. “And I drove down there and the first person I saw was Chris Kelly, a Jenkintown police officer on the scene.”
The new labor agreement is backdated to January 2024 and runs until the end of 2027.
Police officers will be paid $112,841 for 2025; $116,700 for 2026, and $120,878 for 2027. Sergeants will receive $$120,477 for 2025; $124,694 for 2026; and $129,058 for 2027.
The agreement also includes “rectifying conflicts between the Fair Labor Standards Act and banking types of time off.” Also, the agreement on staffing fits the borough’s needs, officials said. It also offers officers a “pathway for increased and modernized training.”
“This new CBA (collective bargaining agreement) also provides fair pay and good benefits, opportunities to learn new skills that support 21st century policing policies, attention to health and wellbeing, and ensures that our officers are provided with what they need in order to do the job right. In addition to the new CBA, many of the Jenkintown Police Department policies have recently been updated and continue to be revised. In combination, this new agreement and updated policies will continue to foster a culture of high performance and accountability,” officials said.
“Jenkintown Borough remains steadfast in its commitment to providing all public safety services with the support needed to ensure the safety and security of all residents and visitors to the borough,” officials said.
Stanton said he’s “happy to see that there was an agreement that the Jenkintown Police force will continue to protect this town. And continue to deliver babies.”
