Minneapolis City Council approves police union contract

The Minneapolis City Council has approved a police union contract that has been at the center of much debate.

Following the approval, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey responded.

The council voted 8-5 Thursday morning to approve the agreement after discussion that became heated at times.

As some members began attacking others during the discussion on the contract, Council President Andrea Jenkins had to step in and tell the group to show respect for each other.

MPLS City Council President Jenkins tells council members to respect each others opinions "…exercise decorum and respect for all our humanity.." After some heated moments during debate about MPD union contract.

— Eric Chaloux (@EricChalouxKSTP) March 24, 2022

The agreement includes increased wages, $7,000 retention bonuses for new and existing officers — when they meet certain requirements — as well as a market adjustment.

Its approval comes after more than two years of negotiations and mediation between the city and police. The tentative agreement was advanced to the full council after a committee voted to do so on Tuesday.

RELATED: Committee advances contract between Minneapolis, police union to full council

If the council didn’t approve the deal, city staff members say the city and police union would’ve gone into binding arbitration, as it’s too late under state law to continue bargaining.

“For 813 days, the members of the Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis have been working without a contract,” the police union said in a statement. “Today marks a significant step forward for the City of Minneapolis, the residents of the City, and the police officers who choose to continue to show up and do amazing work in the face of such adversity. The mounting pressures on this profession have made it challenging, not only for the City of Minneapolis but for numerous other agencies across the state to hire and retain qualified officers.”

“With the passage of this contract, the City of Minneapolis now has a greater likelihood of hiring and retaining officers, who might otherwise not choose to work for this city,” the union added. “This is also an opportunity to continue the efforts of rebuilding the relationship between the City Council and the Police Officers Federation. The commitment to rebuild the relationship needs to be from all stakeholders. Today we recognize there is work to do moving forward and we are committed to doing that work for the betterment of the City and communities we serve.”

Previously, more than 20 racial justice groups asked the council to delay a contract decision, with one councilor motioning for a public hearing. However, that motion ended up failing.

Earlier this year, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said, “Police officers need to get paid more and they also need to get fired more.” A note on the council’s agenda says Frey has reviewed the tentative agreement and recommends it for approval.

The city and police union are expected to start negotiating for the next contract — which would start next year — later this year.

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5 EYEWITNESS NEWS will continue to provide updates in this developing story.