As the village of Mingo Junction continues to face budget issues, the police department has agreed to make some big cuts.


Officials say those cuts do not include layoffs; only changes to pay and other benefits.


The memorandum of understanding is between the village and the union representing its police officers starting Jan. 1.


According to Chief Steve Maguschak, it's a way to keep jobs and keep the residents safe despite the tough economy.


"The officers did away with all their economic benefits and went to a flat rate, their base rate pay. And on top of that, they took a 33 percent decrease in pay as a concession," he explains.


Maguschak says the cuts, which include overtime and longevity pay among other concessions, will affect all of the officers in the village including him. He says these concessions will take their paycheck down to about half of what they made last year translating to just over $10 an hour for the patrolmen.


"With our understanding that we signed with council, none of our officers will get laid off. We'll still maintain service to the citizens, but my officers are going to be in dire straights, to be quite honest with you," says Maguschak.


Maguschak adds that the officers could have received more on unemployment, but they agreed keeping the village safe was more important.


After all the cuts are made, the department's budget will be within $175,000.


The agreement also says that finance meetings will be held each month to review the village's financial standing to see if some of the concessions can be relieved or if more actions need to be taken.