NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Deputies at the New Orleans sheriff's office are getting pay raises this year.
The Orleans Parish Sheriff's Office said Tuesday that under the budget approved by the city council, base pay for deputies will rise by $2,000 on Friday. They'll receive another $1,500 annual salary boost on July 1. New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu annouced the pay raises in his New Year message.
When both $3,500 salary hikes are enacted, the sheriff's office says a deputy's base salary will be $29,500 a year. Those deputies who qualify for a state supplement receive another $6,000 on top of the base pay.
The sheriff's office operates the city jail.
The office said the raises will be paid with $3 million added to its budget to cover costs associated with reforms ordered under the settlement of a 2012 lawsuit filed by inmate advocates and the Justice Department.
