BUTLER — While the union negotiator says a reduction in the starting wage for new sheriff's deputies could mean difficulty in recruiting candidates, the commissioners chairwoman maintains that the county must not let expenditures overtake revenues.

John Listisen, business manager and lead negotiator for Service Employees International Union Local 688, said the four contracts currently being negotiated on behalf of county employees could be settled if it weren't for the two-tier wage system being pushed by the county commissioners and their negotiator, attorney Chris Gabriel.

In the system, newly hired sheriff's deputies would earn 80 percent of the highest wage level paid, which would amount to just over $16 per hour. They would earn that wage for two years in the proposed wage system.

Listisen said new hires now earn about $22 per hour.

He said they would earn 90 percent for the second and third years of their employment.

Listisen said such a starting rate would make recruiting difficult and produce underqualified deputies. The sheriff's department is currently short on deputies, Listisen said, and filling the empty positions would be all but impossible at $16 per hour.

“This would be very dangerous to the community and very dangerous to the courts,” he said.

The union is now trying to have the sheriff's deputies placed in a separate category, so the wage scale issue can be negotiated without affecting other employees.

“If we can get (the commissioners) to agree to cut the sheriff's deputies out because of these (wage) concerns, we could probably get the contracts taken care of and ratified,” Listisen said.

He said three other contracts with county employees are ready to be ratified by the union membership.

They are the court-appointed employees, including court reporters; clerical professionals, such as Children and Youth caseworkers; and 911 dispatchers, maintenance employees and others.

Leslie Osche, commissioners chairwoman, said the starting rate for sheriff's deputies in Butler County is higher than other counties in Western Pennsylvania.

“This is not unusual, to ask for tiers,” Osche said of the proposed wage system.

She said the wage system was successfully enacted with the county's corrections officers, whom she said the commissioners are monitoring.

“So far, they haven't raised any red flags and said, 'There's a problem,'” Osche said.

She said the commissioners want to avoid increasing taxes and ensure the budget is balanced.

“We have expressed long-term concern about sustainability and the stability of county finances,” Osche said. “It's no secret that we have to make sure that budget growth is not exceeding revenue growth.”

She said no current county employees would be affected in the proposed wage scale.

“Nobody's losing anything here,” Osche said.

The two sides will meet for a bargaining session Thursday.