Deputy Police Chief Inks New Contract With Town Through Mid-2026

The Select Board late last month unanimously approved a new contract for deputy police chief Charlie Gibson that runs through June 2026 and will keep him as one of the island's highest-paid municipal employees. 

Gibson, the husband of town manager Libby Gibson and the longest-tenured officer at the Nantucket Police Department, will receive a compensation package that will exceed $250,000 per year. 

The two-year deal was negotiated by a team of town employees including human resources director Amanda Perry, police chief Jody Kasper, assistant town manager Rick Sears, and director of municipal finance Brian Turbitt. All of those staff members report directly to the town manager.

Gibson is in a so-called "union of one," meaning that he is the sole town of Nantucket employee represented by Local Union 1249 of the Laborers International Union of North America. The situation is unique in town government, as there is no other collective bargaining agreement that covers just one municipal employee. 

The new contract for Gibson was approved on a unanimous vote of the Select Board on August 21st. After several requests by the Current for the full contract, it was posted on the town's website on Sept. 5th. It includes a base salary for 2024 of $181,475, which was raised by 3 percent plus a $10,000 adjustment that the police department's other officers received in their most recent collective bargaining agreement. The base wage will rise by 5 percent on July 1, 2025. 

The contract also includes increases in both longevity pay (increased to $10,888 for 2024) and Gibson's education incentive payment (increased to $49,950 for 2024). 

All of the agreed-upon changes and increases in the new contract are outlined  in this document  provided by the town, and the full contract can be viewed at this link. 

In response to an inquiry from the Current about the compensation package approved by the Select Board, chair Brooke Mohr stated that given Gibson's experience and background, there was no comparison to other positions within town government. 

"When we look at these contracts they are viewed as a whole package," Select Board chair Brooke Mohr said. "Town administration has done extensive work to provide the board with the necessary information to evaluate the various compensation packages throughout town government. Within the Police Department, aligning them relative to other ranks is part of the equation. The deputy chief has a unique combination of experience and educational background that makes direct comparison to any other person or position impossible. In the end, the board decided the compensation package was warranted given the breadth of experience and expertise the deputy chief brings to the department."

Perry, the town's human resources manager, provided the background on the "union of one" situation involving Gibson's collective bargaining agreement.

"The Local 1249 is a chapter of a larger union, Laborers International Union of North America," Perry said. "Going back to 2000, this union represented three positions, the deputy chief and two lieutenants. The town and the Laborers Union negotiated to move the police positions from LIUNA Local 1060 (administrative union) to a Falmouth-based local, LIUNA 1249. In 2003, when the deputy was promoted to his current position, the two lieutenant positions remained vacant. In 2004 the town filled the vacant lieutenant positions, however under Local 330A and not Local 1249. The 330A union represents now lieutenants and sergeants."

While Gibson's education incentive is five times more than the maximum $10,000 provided by the town to lieutenants and sergeants under their collective bargaining agreement, Perry said the discrepancy is not significant because those officers are also eligible for education incentive payments under the state Quinn Bill that Gibson is not. 

"When a union contract is negotiated, the town looks at the total compensation package relative to other unions across the town," Perry said. "With respect to Local 1249, the most comparable group is the Local 330A, representing the sergeants and lieutenants. Education is just one component of the contract, and this was shared with the Select Board. The deputy chief position is a critical position for the Police Department and the incumbent is experienced and educated in the field of policing."

Gibson attended Roger Williams University – where he earned a pair of bachelor’s degrees in public administration and administration of justice - and also earned his law degree through Roger Williams University’s School of Law.

Gibson, who has been with the Nantucket Police Department since 1982, is responsible for the management of the department's division of administrative services, which includes oversight of the Emergency Communications Center (e911), the Public Safety IT Network, the town-wide radio and telecommunications system, the business licensing office, along with fleet and facility management responsibilities.

While the new deal would keep him as deputy chief through mid-2026, Gibson is currently running as an independent candidate for the Nantucket Superior Court clerk position against Democrat Colleen Whelden in the November 2024 election. He has so far declined to comment about his campaign.