YOUNGSTOWN — City Council will consider ratifying contracts Wednesday with its water department and emergency police dispatchers unions that include large raises for this year — to put the employees in line with what other unions are receiving in 2026.

The 78 members of the water department union will get 5.5% raises this year, while the 13 members in the dispatchers union will get 8% raises.

The city does pattern bargaining, meaning the highest pay raises given to one union in a particular year are then given to all other unions.

The city’s fire, police patrol and police ranking officers unions received 4% raises for 2025 and 2026, with the latter two unions set to get 4% in 2027.

The water department union members received a 2.5% raise in 2025, so the 5.5% raise for 2026 is the standard 4% raise given to all city unions, with an additional 1.5% to make up for the difference in 2025.

The raise is 8% for the dispatchers’ union because it didn’t have an agreement in place for 2025, so it is getting 4% for last year and 4% for this year.

The two unions, which have already ratified the contracts, would get 4% raises in 2026 and 2.5% raises in 2027.

Also, the two unions agreed to have the city no longer pay the employees’ pension pickup by Dec. 26.

For water department workers, that is 10%. It is 8.5% for dispatchers.

City Finance Director Kyle Miasek said: “The administration met with each of these unions and pattern bargained, coming to agreements where both parties felt each was rewarded with negotiations. In addition, we negotiated the elimination of the employee pickup paid by the city. We renegotiated for the employee to be responsible and we’re offsetting it in their wages so there is no financial impact on the employee or the city.”

The water union contract would expire April 30, 2029, if council ratifies it at its Wednesday meeting.

The contract also includes a provision to have the city pay for training or programs to obtain a commercial driver’s license. The city would pay 100% of that cost if the employee remains on staff for five years. The employee would be responsible for a portion if they leave before those five years.

There is a small annual increase for uniform and boot allowances, and combining the two into one payment. Currently, employees get $783.20 a year for uniforms and boots, provided in separate checks. The new annual allocation would be a combined $800.

In addition to the pay raises, the new dispatchers’ contract, which would expire Dec. 31, 2028, increases extra payments to those working the afternoon and night shifts.

Currently those working the afternoon shift get 45 cents an hour on top of their hourly pay. With this contract, it increases to 50 cents an hour.

Those who work the night shift currently get an additional 55 cents per hour. That would go to 60 cents per hour.

Dispatchers with associate degrees would get a $450 annual payment from the city, up from the current $405. Those with bachelor degrees would get $700 a year, up from the current $470. The two sides agreed to remove bonuses for those with post-graduate degrees. That annual payment was $565 under the old contract.

The new contract gives each dispatcher union member $420 a year to pay for parking at a “city-designated facility.” The old contract gave the union nine parking passes.

The city is finalizing a new contract with its wastewater union that will likely be in front of council next month.