The union representing Minneapolis police officers has reached a tentative agreement with City Hall for new labor contract.
The agreement, which follows eight months of public and closed-door negotiations and mediation, faces a vote by the Minneapolis Police Federation and requires approval by the City Council.
Tuesday's announcement of the deal by the city contains almost no details, such as how much of a pay raise officers will get, what sort of retention and recruitment incentives are included and whether the contract contains notable disciplinary reforms that police critics have called for.
Details will be made public after rank-and-file officers vote on it, the announcement said.
"This is good news for the Minneapolis community safety system and the residents and visitors who rely on it," Mayor Jacob Frey said in a statement. "This agreement will advance critical reform work and make significant progress on competitive pay for Minneapolis officers and recruits."
On Tuesday afternoon, Sgt. Sherral Schmidt, president of the Police Federation, released a statement that said, in part: "We will share the details of this agreement with our members throughout the next week. The [federation] believes this agreement will fulfill our goal of providing competitive compensation for our current and future Minneapolis police officers."
Minneapolis' current police labor agreement was adopted in March 2022 after state mediation, and it expired Dec. 31 of that year.
The department has been struggling with historically low staffing numbers since 2020. As of March, the were 560 sworn officers with 21 on leave, about 40% below the force's strength in 2020. The city's charter sets the minimum staffing level to the equivalent of around 723 officers today.
In the fall, Frey and Police Chief Brian O'Hara reached a deal on a $15 million recruitment and incentives package, but the city council rejected that plan.
Star Tribune staff writer Liz Sawyer contributed to this story.
