LAPD union declares impasses in salary negotiations with city

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- In a highly unusual move, officials with the union representing nearly 10,000 LAPD officers announced an impasse in salary negotiations with the city on Friday. The L.A. Police Protective League feels there is no good-faith bargaining.

Most labor impasses are called by management, not labor organizations. The union filed the impasse notice with the city's employee relations board, which now has five days to respond.

"The city's most recent offer is not only insulting, it's regressive," said Tyler Izen, Los Angeles Police Protective League. "It actually is financially worse than the proposal our members turned down in July."

The union complains that despite making sacrifices in recent years to help the city's budget, members continue to get low pay. They want an 8-percent increase over three years.

"The city's offer to us originally was a year of zero," said Izen. "The offer that the city brought us on Monday was two years of zero."

"I certainly don't feel that we are at impasse," said L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti. "I respect that people can articulate that word, but I think impasse is when people actually aren't talking to each other, there is nothing new at the table."

The mayor feels optimistic. He says the two sides worked out higher salaries for new officers and paying overtime. He disagrees the city's latest officer is insulting.

"I certainly think there's a lot of police officers who want us to continue to talk and be at the table and get a contract," said Garcetti.

The union says morale is down and claims the LAPD has already lost 120 officers to other departments.

"We are sort of a training ground for other agencies because our members will eventually look for better salaries and benefits and opportunities, and that's not fair," said union attorney Hank Hernandez.

The next step is for a mediator, a third party to talk to both sides and try to work out an agreement, but that could take several weeks.