FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 7, 2025

Pierce County Deputy Sheriff's Guild Working Without Contract as Staffing Crisis Continues

TACOMA, WA - The Pierce County Deputy Sheriff's Guild announces that as of January 1, 2025, its members are working without a contract following the expiration of their 2022-2024 collective bargaining agreement, impacting our ability to quickly and meaningfully address public safety crises and protect crime victims in our County. 

Pierce County currently maintains the lowest police/deputy-to-population staffing ratio in Washington State, significantly affecting public safety service delivery across its extensive jurisdiction. The department serves a vast area of unincorporated Pierce County and contract cities with staffing levels that fall well below public safety planning best practices – working at less than a quarter of recommended patrol and investigative personnel levels based on population, crime rates, and geographic coverage requirements.

The staffing shortage is compounded by challenges in recruitment and retention, as neighboring agencies offer more competitive compensation packages, better equipment, and more sustainable working conditions. Pierce County deputies currently work with:
- Aging equipment and infrastructure
- Limited operational budgets
- Lower compensation compared to neighboring jurisdictions
- Significantly higher workloads per employee

We remain ready and eager to engage in meaningful negotiations with the incoming Sheriff and Executive to address these critical issues. Our goal is to work collaboratively with County leadership to develop solutions that will enhance public safety services for Pierce County residents while ensuring fair working conditions for our Deputies.

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Contact:
Pierce County Deputy Sheriff's Independent Guild Executive Board
www.PCDSGuild.com
 
The Pierce County Deputy Sheriffs Guild is a labor organization of approximately 305 members and has been in existence for decades. We represent the rank-and-file, fully commissioned law enforcement employees of Pierce County that patrol your neighborhoods 24/7. We are separate in name from our brothers and sisters who work in the corrections bureau. We are made up of the ranks of Deputy, Detective, Sergeants, Detective Sergeants and Lieutenants. We work together and in collaboration with like agencies to provide a safer, better, and more stable working environment for our members.

Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PCDSGuild

For Immediate Release: November 8, 2024

Pierce County Deputy Sheriff's Independent Guild Congratulates and Welcomes Keith Swank as the next Sheriff of Pierce County

The Guild is looking forward to working collaboratively with Sheriff Keith Swank and his new administration to implement a more effective Sheriff's Department. We are encouraged by the opportunity to focus on fixing our department's substantial challenges. As the Pierce County Sheriff's Department maintains the lowest staffing levels in the state by far, we face unprecedented challenges. Our Deputies currently serve an expansive geographic area with substantially higher call volumes per Deputy than neighboring agencies, while operating with severely limited resources. Our staffing and resourcing have never adequately grown with the areas we serve over the last 30 years, as Pierce County has transformed into a complex and highly populated unincorporated area. 

We anticipate Sheriff Swank will prioritize addressing these critical staffing deficiencies, which will not only enhance the safety of Pierce County citizens but also improve working conditions and morale among our Deputies. By maintaining a professional focus on departmental needs rather than external controversies, we believe significant progress can be made on these core issues. These improvements are essential, as our current staffing levels have pushed response times well beyond acceptable standards, particularly in our rural areas. Additionally, our investigative capacity is constantly overloaded, resulting in far too many cases being inactive.

Our patrol, investigations, detachments, and specialized units operate under severe budgetary constraints, often relying on outdated and poorly maintained equipment to perform their vital functions. Despite these challenges, our Deputies consistently demonstrate remarkable dedication to serving our community, though we recognize that Pierce County residents deserve a higher level of service than our current resources allow us to provide.
These longstanding issues have been compounded by past patterns in labor relations and contract negotiations. We are optimistic that Sheriff Swank's extensive street-level law enforcement experience and time with a well-resourced agency will bring a fresh perspective to these critical discussions. The Guild looks forward to engaging in substantive, solution-focused dialogue free from our historic hurdles.

The Guild congratulates and welcomes Sheriff Swank, and we look forward to establishing a productive partnership with his administration. We are eager to work with a Sheriff who brings years of practical law enforcement leadership to the department. We anticipate collaborating with Sheriff Swank and his administration to build a stronger, better equipped, and properly staffed department that can fulfill our vital mission to protect life and property, uphold rights, and work in partnership to build strong, safe communities. This mission can only be accomplished through proper staffing, adequate resources, and professional leadership focused on serving the citizens of Pierce County. 

Contact:
Pierce County Deputy Sheriff's Independent Guild Executive Board
www.PCDSGuild.com

The Pierce County Deputy Sheriffs Guild is a labor organization of approximately 305 members and has been in existence for decades. We represent the rank-and-file, fully commissioned law enforcement employees of Pierce County that patrol your neighborhoods 24/7. We are separate in name from our brothers and sisters who work in the corrections bureau. We are made up of the ranks of Deputy, Detective, Sergeants, Detective Sergeants and Lieutenants. We work together and in collaboration with like agencies to provide a safer, better, and more stable working environment for our members.

Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PCDSGuild

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