Bristol Twp. School District Police, Security Union Wants Changes

The union that represents the Bristol Township School District’s police and security officers wants a better deal and they feel the administration and school board have put them off.

The eight-member union of certified police officers, who are not armed and do not carry handcuffs, and security staff that watch over the district’s schools have been without a contract since the labor group was formed in 2013, according to school police officer and union President Ken Lanning.

The union head explained to LevittownNow.com that the school police and security officers are paid $13.75 an hour and receive health benefits for themselves but not their families.

Lanning, a retired SEPTA police officer and Bristol Township resident, said the school police and security officers are the first line of defense at the district’s buildings. Many of the officers came to Bristol Township schools with years of experience and are highly trained.

He noted that school police and security officers in other districts earn more than those in Bristol Township, noting that Pennsbury officers can make as much as $20 an hour.

Increasing the pay rate and adding health insurance that covers officer’s families would be an added benefit that would help retain school police and security officers, Lanning said.

The school police officer stated he loves his job but will need to leave to find employment with family health insurance once his SEPTA-provided, post-employment coverage runs out.

“I love these kids. I really do, ” Lanning said. “That’s why I do this job.”

The school police and security officers union has felt that the district is pushing off their contract talks because they are only eight members and don’t have the size and resources that the teachers’ union have behind them.

Lanning worries that the pay and benefits situation could make for an unsafe environment if the district is unable to hire officers and retain ones with years experience.

“The concept that student safety is compromised because of a contract dispute is simply not true. We also do not believe that the current contract situation is hindering our recruitment efforts,” Angela Nober, the president of the school board, said in a statement.

The school police and security union has offered a three-year deal and has heard little from the district. Lanning said there was talk of giving the officers a $1,000 bonus instead of the pay raises but that did not move forward.

Nober said that the district values the officers but cannot meet the salary and benefit demands that have been proposed. She added that it would increase the total compensation by 65 percent.

“Since that time there have been various union presidents and no continuity of leadership, thus making it difficult to negotiate a contract. I believe that the security professionals working within our schools are committed to the safety of our students as we work through this negotiation process,” Nober further said in a statement.