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POLICEPAY.NET
NEGOTIATION TRAINING JULY 26-27 -
City sues to kick-start police contract negotiations
State arbitration board dragging its
heels, Bloomberg complains From the In
the latest move over stalled contract talks between the city and its largest
police union, the Bloomberg administration announced yesterday it is suing
the state board charged with arbitrating the contract. Fed
up with what he called foot-dragging by the state Public Employment Relations
Board, Mayor Michael Bloomberg says he wants a judge to force the board to
appoint an arbitration panel -- over objections from the Patrolmen's
Benevolent Association. The
city filed for arbitration in July, but the procedure stalled while PERB was naming the three-member board. Under
PERB rules, each side chooses a person from a list
of nine names. Then an impartial chairperson is chosen from the list through
a process of elimination, in which both sides take turns striking names. PBA president Patrick Lynch objected to two of the names,
contending they were biased because they had ruled unfavorably toward the PBA in past arbitration proceedings. The
Bloomberg administration's suit invokes PERB rules
that say if one side refuses to strike names, then all names are acceptable.
Under those rules, PERB must appoint a chair, the
city argues. The
suit was filed in state Supreme Court, The
city has made fair offers to the PBA, one of which
would give police officers the same raise that firefighters received while
raising the starting salary to $38,000, Bloomberg said in a statement. What's
inexplicable is how PERB has dragged its feet and
slowed the arbitration process to a halt instead of appointing a panel to
hear the case. In
response, PBA officials called the lawsuit a
desperate attempt by the city to stack the deck against police officers by
trying to name a biased arbitrator. The union said it has acted in the best
interests of its officers and has complied with every directive issued by PERB in the current dispute. Police union ratifies contract After
a presentation by union leadership, the members supported the proposed
contract by a vote of 44-21. There were 76 members eligible to vote. FOP
President Darrin Logan said he could not discuss details of the agreement
until City Council takes action. City Council’s Finance and Personnel committees will consider
the contract at a special meeting 5 p.m. Thursday at the Police: Fix
The System From,
WTAP, February 4, 2007 The
head of "The
way it's paid now, we would get time and a half on a holiday, and we're going
to drop to straight time on a holiday when we're off, so we're kicking off an
additional five hours for every holiday when we're working," says Kevin
Hornbeck, a police officer and President of F.O.P. Lodge #79. "So the
officers are kicking in a majority of this money. So the officers are kicking
in a majority of this money. Yes, the city's going to have to fund some of
it, but I believe the majority of it is going to be funded by the officers themselves." Hornbeck
says that when he became a police officer in the 1990's, hundreds of people
signed up to take the officer's exam. He says now, that number has fallen to
35, in part because other departments have better pay scales. "The
sheriff's department has a better pay system than we do," Hornbeck says.
"Vienna Police Department has a better pay system than we do. And the
Public Debt security guards make more money than an officer does at our
department." And
police are still upset with city council, for approving a budget two years
ago granting pay raises for civilian city workers, while cutting overtime and
other benefits for uniformed workers. "There
are disparities in our pay system that need worked out, so we can be
equal," Hornbeck says. Hornbeck
believes, however, the newer members of city council are more supportive of
the pay needs of police and fire department members. Deputies push for better pay PRINCESS
ANNE -- Somerset County Sheriff's Office employees are hoping to convince The
current pay scale for deputies in "Our
department merits a raise and retirements," she told commissioners. Deputies
in The
top salary range in Even
within Aside
from lower salaries, employees also must wait 30 years before they can
retire, and Jones would like to change it to 25 which is
offered in "It's
a young man's job," Jones said. The
sheriff also wants his department to enroll in the state's Law Enforcement
Officers Pension System, which was started in 1990 for Maryland Natural
Resources Police but has since expanded to include other state and local
agencies. A representative from LEOPS was slated to
visit the county last week to explain more about the program, including how
much it will cost, Jones said. If
the county commissioners agree to participate, it will be figured into the fiscal
2008 budget which takes effect July 1. While the county's financial
contribution to LEOPS would likely be
"substantial," offering a better pension plan and earlier
retirement will help keep the department competitive, Jones said. It
will also help retain employees like Sgt. Paul Williams who said he has been
in the department since 1995 and would like to stay there, despite making
$15,000 to $20,000 less than his counterparts at other agencies. Williams
said he owns a house in the county and has two sons attending "What
goes on in this county means a lot to me," he said. CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS POLICEPAY provides
complete contract negotiations for your bargaining unit. We will:
Our fee will be a fixed
amount that is agreed to up front. The
fee will include all costs, even travel and hotels. There will be no surprises. We offer options with no up front
payment. You can make equal monthly
payments. If your contract is 36
months, you will make 36 monthly payments. During the term of the
contract, we will:
If we are not able to
reach an agreement with your city, we will provide arbitration services at no
additional cost. We intend to get an
agreement. Our approach to contract
negotiations is different than what you are probably used to. We engage in non-confrontational
negotiations that rely on developing relationships. However, we do not use so called “win-win”
negotiation. It’s a loser for
you. There will be no unfair labor
practice complaints filed by us or lawsuits and grievances. If that is what you are wanting you need to
call the usual knucklehead lawyers that have been screwing up police
negotiations for years. Intimidation
and blustering are not in our arsenal. If you prefer to
negotiate yourself we can provide any of the services listed above, with the
same payment plans, only at lower rate.
If this is the way you want to go, you need to attend one of our
negotiation seminars. The upcoming
seminars are listed on our website. For more information,
give us a call at (405) 234-2235, or contact POLICEPAY.NET Your
Ultimate Solution For Contract Negotiations |
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