OCEANSIDE -- The city settled two lawsuits with groups of police officers this week by increasing pay for canine handlers and giving most rank-and-file officers extra paid time off.

The first suit was brought by six officers who claimed they weren't paid enough for taking care of police dogs. The city agreed to pay a slightly higher rate for at-home animal care and write a $48,000 check to the plaintiffs for back pay, City Attorney John Mullen said.

The second settlement was more complex.

Oceanside agreed to give 6,000 hours in paid leave and $120,000 for attorneys fees to 26 officers who claimed they should have been paid for putting on uniforms, preparing cars before shift and other work-related chores they did off the clock.

Originally, the officers wanted between $2 million and $3 million, Mullen said.

Since the lawsuit was filed in 2006, the Police Department has changed its policies, assigning cars to officers and giving them 10 minutes at the beginning of each shift to get ready for work, Mullen said.

The city put restrictions on the leave time to lessen the sting on the Police Department. Plaintiffs can cash out 10 percent of their hours each year, potentially costing the city $210,000 over the next decade, Mullen said.

Councilman Jerry Kern supported the settlement, saying it was better to "get it done, get it out of the way," than risk a potentially costly trial.

"Do I like paying the cops for getting dressed and undressed? No. I think it's silly," Kern added.

Councilman Rocky Chavez opposed both deals earlier this year when the council approved them 4-1 in closed session.

"It just seems to me that we've gone to great lengths to monetarily compensate (police officers) with great wages and then our payback for that is a lawsuit," Chavez said Wednesday.

Oceanside's sworn police officers are the county's second-highest paid, according to a city salary survey in January.

Federal judges signed off on the settlements this week, dismissing the cases.

Alim Malik, one of the officers' attorneys in the larger suit, declined to comment Thursday.

Mullen predicted that it could be years before there is case law addressing an employer's obligation to pay for such pre- and post-shift work.

Many cities are dealing with the same kind of labor dispute. Santa Rosa settled with 80 of its officers this year for $240,000. San Luis Obispo made a deal with its police union for $55,000 and scheduling concessions.

To prevent similar lawsuits from officers who weren't part of this case, the city obtained releases from 160 of them in exchange for 80 hours in leave.

"It is very difficult, if not impossible," to quantify the cost of that concession, Mullen said, because it can't be converted to cash and some officers may not use it. The officers will not be able to use it on days when the city would incur overtime expenses or drop below minimum staffing levels, Mullen said.

Contact staff writer Craig TenBroeck at (760) 901-4062 or ctenbroeck@nctimes.com.