Civil Service Deputy Sheriffs: Classification Grievance Update

You may recall that in February 2022, Department of Justice, Sheriff Services received notice filed by the NSGEU advising that both the roles of Deputy Sheriff 1-2 and Deputy Sheriff 3 had evolved to the point of substantial alteration and we were seeking negotiation of a new salary. Representatives of the employer and the Public Service Commission (PSC) attended a presentation by employee representatives and NSGEU in April 2022 to hear their rationale. The union subsequently filed two substantially altered classification grievances; one for the Deputy Sheriff I-II classification (P-20-1594), and one for the Deputy Sheriff III classification (P-21-449).

The grievances were moved along and ultimately referred to adjudication on October 18th, 2022. Your union and a group of Sheriff Deputies had been working on preparing for an adjudication hearing, which was scheduled for October 18th, 19th, and 20th, 2023. The employer had made application to the adjudicator, requesting an adjournment.

The adjournment was granted on September 29th, 2023. Further adjudication dates were scheduled for May 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 2024. The union reached out to the employer to request that the days scheduled for adjudication be used as mediation, with the hopes that the parties could come together and see if there was a resolution to the matter. The employer agreed and the parties met with Adjudicator Bruce Outhouse on May 22nd, 2024.

Both the union and the employer worked with Adjudicator Outhouse in good faith to hear each side’s position. As a result of those efforts, we are pleased to announce that the parties have reached a successful outcome to the grievances. The parties have reached the following terms for settlement:

• The Deputy Sheriff I Classification shall move from paygrade TE 19 to TE 21;
• The Deputy Sheriff II classification shall move from paygrade TE 21 to TE 23;
• The Deputy Sheriff III classification shall move from paygrade TE 23 to TE 24.

In addition, the current employees in a DS III position will be offered the opportunity to either remain in the DS III classification or move into a Staff Sergeant EC 8 position. If the DS III volunteered to move into the excluded classification, there would be no requirement to compete and the DS III position would become the new Staff Sergeant position.

The move to the new paygrades would be step-to-step. As an example, if you were a DS II and at a step 5, you would move to TE 23, step 5.

The new rates of pay would be on a go-forward basis effective the date of signing of the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), which we hope to have signed as soon as possible. The Employer will be working to process these changes as soon as possible; however, due to the volume of employees being reclassified, the new pay rates may take some time to be properly reflected in the Employer’s payroll system.

This is a good outcome for the our Deputy Sheriffs working in these important roles every day, and recognizes your hard work and dedication to Sheriff Services. We want to thank all those who worked hard to reach a successful outcome.

We appreciate your ongoing patience and support as we worked through this process. We will advise you once the MOA is signed.