Larger paychecks are on their way to officers in the Laurel Police Department after the city agreed to a new collective bargaining agreement that will also introduce a higher starting salary for officers.
Under the new contract, officers will get a pay bump of 8% starting July 1. The contract will also increase entry-level salaries from $65,000 to $70,000, which is the average of surrounding municipalities such as Bowie, Baltimore City and Hyattsville.
The new agreement was signed by Laurel Mayor Keith Sydnor and members of the Laurel police union, the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 11, during an April 27 City Council meeting.
Members of the Fraternal Order of Police said the pay increase was needed to make the Laurel Police Department more competitive in recruiting officers amid an ongoing national police staffing crisis.
“The biggest thing is trying to keep competitive starting salaries, retain qualified people that we have here, and then continue to advocate for the officers that have done their service,” said Sgt. Jesse Conyngham, a Laurel police officer and union member.
Officers will now see a 3% salary increase in 2027 and 2028 and a 4% increase in 2029. The new agreement also extends the contract term from three years to four years.
“This contract allows us to stay competitive and recruit the type of people you want policing this city,” said Laurel Police Chief Russ Hamill.
Deputy City Administrator Nekesa Matlock said the increase is intended to incentivize officers to stay with Laurel rather than move to other departments because of higher pay.
“When officers get to maybe their third or fourth year of serving with the city, we would tend to lose them,” Matlock said.
The Laurel Police Department continues to follow a staffing trend throughout the region as jurisdictions struggle to recruit and retain officers while offering incentives. Prince George’s County Police are offering $15,000 signing bonuses to new officers and increased the proposed FY 2027 budget by 6.4%, in part to raise officer salaries. Montgomery County is offering $20,000 signing bonuses for officers, while the Metropolitan Police Department is offering $25,000.
Conyngham said that in his 18 years with the department, the agency has never been fully staffed. The department currently has 63 of its 70 officer positions filled and is seeking to hire more officers.
Laurel police have had a collective bargaining agreement since unionizing in 2012, with negotiations typically occurring every three years between city officials and police department leadership. The previous contract was signed in 2023 and was set to expire this year.
Conyngham said the longer contract term happened because union leadership felt comfortable with the agreement’s terms.
“I think in the past we had aired on shorter contracts because we found enough ground to agree, but didn’t want to put that much time in between things,” Conyngham said. “So just being able to put a little bit more time on it was something we were comfortable with at the end of the day.”