Westmoreland County has cut a new deal with its lawyers.

The county salary board approved the four-year agreement Tuesday. It starts new attorneys at $65,000 a year. Lawyers hired in 2023 would be likewise adjusted. More senior lawyers would see comparable salary increases, according to human resources director Alexis Bevan.

One significant part of this deal is that it covers both sides of the courtroom.

The county will pay the same amount to assistant district attorneys as public defenders. That’s an admirable step many counties don’t take.

State law spells out how much a common pleas judge can make. It further dictates how much a county’s elected, full-time district attorney gets — $1,000 less than a judge. It keeps the roles of the critical court officers comparable but maintains the judge’s position as the authority figure in the room.

Public defenders, however, often are left out. Pennsylvania is the only state that doesn’t financially support public defense. It might be required by the Sixth Amendment — you know, the whole “if you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you” thing — but the constitution is vague about just how that happens.

But the county deal with its lawyers also addresses a second issue: competitiveness.

Pennsylvania has 67 counties that all need to fill jobs for the prosecution and defense — and that’s without considering the private sector positions. It can be hard for a cash-strapped area to get or keep talent.

The DA’s Office and defense have struggled with that in Westmoreland County. Allegheny County was paying $65,000 for its public defenders last year.

“We’re hopeful these new salaries are competitive and will draw interest from candidates graduating law school,” Public Defender Wayne McGrew said.

The county did what was necessary to keep court cases rolling, despite a budget crunch that prompted a 32.5% tax increase. It might seem counterintuitive, but keeping employees — even at a higher cost — can save more money in the long run than trying to juggle the job with too few people.

Proof of that is in the other contract approved this week: jail guards.

The contract for those workers ran out at the end of 2022. Even earlier than that, the jail was dealing with unfilled positions. That meant short-staffed shifts, overworked employees and way too much overtime.

In 2022, the county paid more than $5 million in overtime to its workers, most of which (about $1.38 million) went to jail employees. Similar figures were expected for 2023.

The new contract will give annual raises of about 3%, but also deals with issues like mandatory overtime and seniority, which also can affect employee paychecks.

Now, maybe the county could do something about the pay hikes for commissioners and other row officers, who got an automatic 3.5% raise this year thanks to a 1997 ordinance. Over the course of three years, that rule tied to the consumer price index has triggered raises totaling about 17%.

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