TPD Officers Receive Unpaid Overtime

TUPELO, Miss. (PRESS RELEASE) – Active Tupelo Police officers, who worked between August 2015 and November 2016, today received the opportunity to accept compensation for unpaid overtime.

Inactive members who worked during those periods will be contact individually.

“In 2016 our administration, utilizing best practices, changed a longstanding payroll practice to a modernized system. This resulted in increased compensation to our officers and revealed that many were owed back pay,” said Mayor Jason L. Shelton, shortly before he addressed a General Assembly of the Tupelo Police Department.

“Our administration self-corrected that problem and did not oppose or contest the Wage and Hour determinations of owned back pay. We are proud to support our police officers and will always give them our full support,” Shelton said.

The settlements offered were calculated by the Wage and Hour Division of the US Department of Labor. The city paid each officer’s hourly rate after the 3 percent pay increase of October 2016 and based that pay on the hours due those officers as determined by the Wage and Hour Division, which approved every check amount.

The pay covered the violation period determined by the Wage and Hour Division to be from August 2015 until November 2016. Officers who started after that period, who were on leave during that period or who were detached for special duties were unaffected by the issue.

To opt into the settlement negotiated on their behalf by the Wage and Hour Division each officer receiving a check was offered the opportunity to sign a release as required by the Wage and Hour Division to settle the case. No officers declined or refused to sign for their checks. Documents confirming the settlement will be returned to the Wage and Hour Division.

The total cost to the city is approximately $857,000, exclusive of fringe benefits. A budget amendment will be requested by Chief Financial Officer Kim Hanna at a later date to cover these costs from the FY 2017-2018 General Fund budget.