The city police department will have additional help available next year.

The new contract between Butler and the department, which is expected to be signed by the end of the week, allows for the hiring of part-time officers, and Mayor Tom Donaldson, who oversees the department, said he plans to use part-timers next year.

“These will be real policemen who can supplement our full-time officers,” Donaldson said.

The officers will be allowed to work 28 hours per week at $15 per hour. They will not receive any benefits offered to the city’s 23 full-time officers. The city budgeted about $36,000 for part-time employees in its proposed 2015 budget.

The mayor said all new hires in the department will start out as part-time officers. They will undergo an evaluation period as a part-time officer before earning a full-time rank.

“It’s my intention that they’ll have to earn a full-time position,” Donaldson said.

There is one vacancy in the department, and the mayor said there could be one or two more by early next year.

“I expect we’ll begin hiring around May or June,” he said.

Donaldson, who is set to enter his second year in office, said using part-time officers only will enhance police coverage.

“I believe there’s nothing wrong with using part-time officers,” he said. “They’ll be able to enhance enforcement by assisting our officers.”

Donaldson also hopes the part-time officers can help reduce some of the overtime costs in the department.

When part-timers earn a full-time rank, they’ll be met with some differences in the police contract.

New hires will pay more in health insurance and will have less vacation time than specified in the previous contract.

Like other officers, new hires will pay 7 percent of their health insurance premiums. However, new hires will pay 30 percent of their premium for any family member covered in the insurance.

Officers pay $13.49 per bi-weekly pay toward health insurance for individual coverage, and up to $43.18 for family coverage.

City clerk Mindy Gall said new hires will pay the same for individual coverage, but will pay up to $140.72 per pay for family coverage.

Donaldson said there were no changes in insurance coverage for existing officers.

New hires will receive one week of vacation after one year on the job, down from three weeks of time off under the previous deal.

Going forward, new hires will have 2 weeks vacation after 5 years, 3 weeks after 10, and 4 weeks after 15 years of service.

“That will also save the city money,” Donaldson said.

The mayor said there is little change to the rest of the police contract.

Officers will receive a 2.5 percent raise the first year of the three-year deal, but the mayor did not comment on raises for the second and third years of the deal.

Gall said union officers currently earn between $35,962 and $65,894. The raise will bump salaries up to between $36,861 and $67,542.

The total cost of union salaries for the department will increase from about $1.19 million to $1.29 million. That does not include the salary of the police chief, who is not part of the union.

Donaldson said three union representatives must sign the contract before each of the five members of council sign it. Donaldson said he hopes it will be finalized on Friday.

He said he is happy to reach a deal with the union to avoid arbitration.

“They work well with us,” Donaldson said. “We both had an incentive not to go to arbitration.”

The city hopes to reach agreements by the end of the year with its other two unions representing firefighters and nonuniformed employees.

“I anticipate those being worked out,” the mayor said. “But there’s really no way of knowing that.”

The mayor said he began negotiating the new police deal in February.

“It took a lot of attention and a lot of time,” he said. “I’m not sure everybody knows that. Hopefully now we can begin focusing on other issues.”

The city went to arbitration with each of its unions when contracts expired at the end of 2011. It took the city more than two years to reach a deal with its fire department.