Deputies at 3 Courts Call In Sick in Dispute

More than three dozen sheriff’s deputies who provide security at several Westside courthouses called in sick on Thursday, continuing a work action aimed at pressuring county officials to come up with more money at the bargaining table.

According to sheriff’s officials, calling in sick were 15 of 21 deputies at the West Los Angeles Court, 18 of 30 deputies at the Santa Monica Court and all four deputies at the Malibu Court. Proceedings at the facilities were delayed until backup personnel could be brought in, officials said.

Officials for the Assn. of Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs declined to comment on the apparent “sick out” Thursday, the second such action in two days. Association officials have said that deputies are frustrated that county officials have come up with a proposed 1.5% pay increase when the deputies were seeking 5%. The deputies have been working for eight months without a contract.

In a prepared statement, Chief Administrative Officer David Janssen said the county was prepared to negotiate. “We made initial salary offers at many of the bargaining tables, including deputy sheriffs, to begin the give-and-take process necessary to reach agreement,” Janssen said. “The county is willing to negotiate in good faith but is limited in doing so as long as ALADS refuses to show flexibility in its salary demand.”