SFPD union members vote 'overwhelmingly' in favor of new deal that includes 14% pay raise
San Francisco Police Department badge (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
SAN FRANCISCO - The San Francisco Police Officers Association on Wednesday announced that rank-and-file officers had voted overwhelmingly to approve a tentative agreement with the City and County of San Francisco that includes, among other things, a 14% salary increase.
That raise would be distributed over the next four years. The deal also includes a 3% retention bonus for officers with at least eight years of service.
Before the new agreement can go into effect, it has to be approved by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and be signed by Mayor Daniel Lurie.
Negotiations for the pay rise began in January.
SFPD recruits, starting on their first day at the police academy, earn a salary of $119,262 a year.
By the numbers:
San Francisco is facing a projected $877 million two-year budget deficit, which raises questions about how city leadership will maintain other programs and simultaneously fund the raises for the police department.
Further adding to the financial strain — the San Francisco firefighters union also recently secured a deal with the city to grant members a 14% pay increase over the next four years. Firefighters with at least 10 years of service to the city will also get a 3% bonus.
Rank-and-file members of the firefighters union have yet to vote on the deal.
Local perspective:
A recent report from think tank SPUR (the San Francisco Bay Area Planning and Urban Research Association) published earlier this month states police and firefighter contract negotiations will be "among the most significant financial decisions the city makes."
"These contracts affect nearly $1 billion in annual spending — about 39% of the city’s discretionary budget. The current deficit projections assume that wages for police officers and firefighters will grow roughly in line with projected inflation, currently 3% to 3.3% annually," the report states. "A wage increase just 2% above inflation could add $58 million to the deficit for police and fire alone, cutting into the city’s discretionary funds that would otherwise be spent on other services."
The report notes that offering no raises will make it harder to recruit new officers to the SFPD. Mayor Daniel Lurie in May 2025 signed an executive order aimed at adding 500 new officers to the department. Then-Interim Chief Paul Yep announced in October of that year the department was seeing a surge in new recruits.
Big picture view:
The potential raises for police and firefighters could create further complications for Lurie’s already tense budget discussions going forward. The city in 2027 will negotiate contracts with its 31,000 other employees, and precedents set now could affect the entire workforce.