This story has been updated.
The San Antonio Police Officers’ Association began collective bargaining negotiations for its union contract with the city last week, launching a 60-day review period over a new three-year agreement focused on pay, healthcare and training.
The contract under negotiation would take effect Oct. 1, and run through Sept. 30, 2029. In a press release, SAPOA said its core priorities include competitive wages, accessible health care and improved training — areas the union says are aimed at strengthening officer retention, readiness and public trust.
City officials are expected to present their counterproposal at the next bargaining session scheduled for Feb. 20.
A major component of the opening proposal focuses on boosting officer compensation to close what the union describes as a growing pay gap between San Antonio and other Texas cities.
Union leaders pointed to base salaries in comparable markets such as Austin, Dallas, Houston and Laredo. Base pay for a San Antonio police officer is $62,916, compared to $70,644 in Austin, $75,397 in Dallas, $75,000 in Houston and $69,308 in Laredo, SAPOA President Danny Diaz said.
The difference in base pay makes it harder to retain experienced officers and recruit new ones, while placing San Antonio at a competitive disadvantage, SAPOA said.
In an email to the Report, the city stated that base salary alone does not reflect total compensation.
“While our base pay may be lower than some cities, officers’ total compensation is competitive when benefits and additional pay are included,” said Brian Chasnoff, assistant director of communications for the City of San Antonio. “This includes clothing allowances, specialty and longevity pay, health care, and pension benefits, which together provide a more accurate picture than base salary alone.”
Chasnoff said the city is surveying other Texas cities as part of ongoing negotiations and plans to present those comparisons at the next bargaining session on Feb. 20. He added that for entry-level officers, additional pay averages about $10,000 annually, including clothing allowances, certification pay, night shift differentials and education pay.
In an interview following the opening meeting, Diaz pointed to recent pay increases secured by other agencies across the state, as well as hiring incentives offered by federal agencies as reasons why SAPOA is requesting pay raises to remain competitive.
“Those are things that we’re looking at to stay compatible with other departments across the state. I said this before, we’re short staffed,” Diaz said. “We have some youngsters that are leaving to go to the federal side. When the government issues a $50,000 signing bonus, it makes things hard to keep people here.”
To address the issue, the union is proposing a structured, multi-year compensation plan that includes cost-of-living adjustments and targeted wage increases. The proposal calls for a 3% cost-of-living adjustment each October, alongside hourly wage increases each April totaling $5 an hour over three years.
SAPOA said the adjustments are intended to address both inflation and market pressures, allowing officers to afford to live in the city they serve while improving retention.
Health care is another central focus of SAPOA’s opening proposal, with the union seeking increased contributions to officers’ Health Savings Accounts and updates to coverage under the city’s health plans.
SAPOA is proposing that the city increase HSA contributions to half of the IRS maximum family contribution limit, which currently stands at $4,375. Under the current contract, the city contributes $1,500 annually for officers enrolled in the consumer-driven health plan.
The proposal also outlines changes to the health care master plan that would expand certain covered services. SAPOA is seeking to remove family and marital counseling, as well as smoking or tobacco cessation programs, from the list of excluded benefits — which would make those services eligible for coverage moving forward.
Diaz said the health care updates are meant to reflect rising costs and changes that have occurred since the current five-year contract was signed.
“Insurance changes every year,” Diaz said. “We’re at the end of a long contract, and things have changed since we signed it. These are things we have to address to make sure we’re doing what’s right by our members.”
Training and professional development is the third major focus of the proposal, with several changes aimed at strengthening field training and supporting experienced officers who mentor new recruits.
If accepted, officers permanently assigned to the Field Training Officer program who provide direct training would receive an increase in special pay from $265 to $500 per month, along with one hour of compensation per day spent training.
Officers in service or support roles within the FTO program would also see an increase in their monthly stipend from $265 to $300.
The proposal also includes compensation for specialized trainers working with newly promoted officers or assigned units, as well as expanded reimbursement for employment-related certifications, including medical and first aid programs.
SAPOA is also proposing expanded shift differentials, including new weekend pay and higher supplements for overnight shifts — policies Diaz said have remained unchanged for decades.
“Our shift differential has been the same for over 30 years,” Diaz said. “With inflation and everything else, it needed to be addressed. The idea is to hopefully bring some senior officers back to nights and weekends and get more coverage when we need it.”
Diaz said several of the proposals are aimed at improving public safety by increasing officer presence across neighborhoods.
“When you look at how many officers we have out on the streets at one time, it’s not enough currently. We need to expand that to where we have more officers to where we can reduce response types,” he said. “The number one crime fighting thing that we learned when I started back in ’91 was that visibility cuts crime. Right now, we’re not able to do that. You don’t see policemen in your neighborhoods quite often, because they’re running from call to call.”
Diaz said the tone of the initial meeting was different from the last contract when he had just taken office five years ago. He said SAPOA has worked hard to show the city that they are not their predecessors and they are willing to negotiate.
“When you’re working together, it’s a whole lot easier to come up with solutions than it is to constantly argue. The vibe was a lot different,” Diaz said. “There’s no arguing or bickering like there’s been in years past prior to me taking office. I’m optimistic that it’s gonna work smoothly, hopefully but again, you know, we’ll see what happens on the 20th.”
Diaz said success would ultimately mean securing stronger pay and benefits for officers, even if the final agreement differs from SAPOA’s opening proposal.
“Success would be if they just took our proposal as is,” Diaz said, with a laugh. “But we’ll see, as long as we can get stuff for our members, that’s something that’s vital, the pay especially.”
