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IPD Officers Vote 'No' To New Contract A
contract that would have meant a pay raise for FOP
President Vince Huber says it was voted down because he wants more money for
veteran officers and better pension pay for retirees. It was a close vote
with 472 against and 458 for it with the younger officers wanting the
pay raise now. "It's
disappointing. It's certainly disappointing but we're more concerned for the
officers than we are for any victory for the mayor," said But
is this just a continuing battle between Huber and the mayor? "No. I
personally don't have anything against the mayor. My goal and responsibility
is to get the best contract possible for our members," Huber said. Some
expected the close vote, saying many didn't have all the facts. "FOP
leadership, I don't think they've done a good job getting information out to
the body," training instructor Jeff Patterson said. When
members walked in to vote, there was a board right next to the ballot box
listing the concerns with the city's offer. You may remember FOP leadership
recommended members not accept the contract, but members took it to a vote
anyway. Is
there good communication between FOP leadership and membership? "Yes.
It's been improved greatly since I became president," Huber said. Then
why do some feel uninformed? Huber said they have to take some responsibility
on their own. Huber
declared impasse giving him the right to call in a federal mediator to work
on a contract the FOP considers acceptable. Deputy
Mayor Campbell doesn't think the mayor will come back with a different
proposal. "I think we put our best offer on the table." But
does it show the mayor isn't supportive of law enforcement? "Oh
no without question. We've actually put more money into law enforcement every
single year since we've been in office," Huber
says this will slow down consolidation. Officers and deputies won't have pay
parity. The
mayor's office says that's wishful thinking, saying the sheriff's department
and police department will merge as planned. N.O.
firefighters union rips Nagin pay plan From Associated Press, July 27, 2006 NEW
ORLEANS (AP) — Mayor Ray Nagin’s new plan to raise police pay across the
board, as well as the pay for starting firefighters, did not go over well
with leaders of the firefighters’ union. Seeking
to slow an exodus of police and fire personnel since Hurricane Katrina, Nagin announced plans Tuesday to raise salaries by 10
percent for all police officers and to boost the annual starting pay for
rookie firefighters by $5,300. City
Council members pledged to implement the plan by Sept. 1. But critics accused
the mayor of ignoring the sacrifices made by veteran firefighters since the
storm. Also
caught off guard by the announcement was Dr. Jullette
Saussy, director of the city’s Emergency Medical
Services unit, who said she hoped the omission of ambulance drivers and
dispatchers from the pay increase proposal was an “oversight.” Nagin labeled the move “a first step,” to be followed
by an ongoing analysis of how to increase salaries for all firefighters and “I
am committed to taking a look at the entire pay structure of firefighters going
forward but right now we are able to fund (only) these raises with our
limited resources,” Nagin said. Nagin said the losses suffered by the Fire Department
are not as great as those the Police Department has experienced and could
face in the near future as other law enforcement agencies, including State
Police, aggressively recruit in Nagin also noted that firefighters, unlike other
municipal workers, benefit from a state-mandated, 2 percent annual pay
increase that kicks in during their third year on the job. Under
Nagin’s plan, the Police Department raises would be
across the board, boosting pay for every position, from new police recruits
to deputy chief to Superintendent Warren Riley. The
salary for a rookie officer still in training would increase from $27,825 to
$30,607. An
officer with one year on the job now earns $29,978 a year, plus $3,600 in
annual state supplemental pay. With the 10 percent raise, those officers
would see their salaries jump to $36,575. Meanwhile,
the annual salary for a new firefighter is slated to increase from $15,519 to
$20,800. At its current level, Nagin said, the Fire
Department’s starting salary “is just not going to get it done.” Nagin said the pay package carries a price tag of $2.2
million, which can be covered partially with savings accrued from budgeted
but unfilled positions in the police and fire departments, and by dipping
into the $3.6 million approved this year by the Legislature to reimburse the
city for support services it provides to Harrah’s New Orleans Casino. The
police force stands at 1,452 officers, about 200 fewer than before Katrina.
But Riley said 200 or so officers have applied for jobs in other cities. Fire
Superintendent Charles Parent said he has about 680 firefighters on board,
about 100 fewer than he had a year ago when the department was already down
from its peak strength. Nick
Felton, president of president of the New Orleans Fire Fighters Local 632,
said after the news conference that, while he believes police officers
deserve a raise, his membership’s patience is wearing thin. “Morale
is already low, and it has just gotten lower,” Felton said. “I can tell you
when this news hits firefighters, they’re going to
be livid. And they should be.” Police
union plans ads to press for pay increases The
effort, likely to continue for at least a year, will include radio
commercials, billboards and community newspaper ads. Police
Benevolent Association President Robert P. Meegan
Jr. said the campaign also might include television spots. "Money
is no object at this point in time," said Meegan,
noting that union members agreed to a dues increase not long after the
control board was created three years ago. "The money was put aside to
do battle, so to speak, with the control board." Mayor
Byron W. Brown said that while the union has every right to take its message
to the public, he was concerned that some spots appear to use "scare
tactics." One radio script, for example, calls the "I
would hate the public to become frightened, because I think the police have
been doing an excellent job," Brown said. He
recited statistics indicating that arrests are up and noted numerous
anti-crime efforts since he took office, including the establishment of a
cold case squad to investigate long-unsolved homicides. The
police union also announced Monday that it soon will launch yet another legal
fight against the control board. The
union already has won a hearing in September on its claim that the 27-month
wage freeze gives it the right to strike. Meegan said the new court battle will challenge the
Buffalo Fiscal Stability Authority's contention that its active control
period won't end until three years after the wage freeze is lifted. Others,
including union leaders, insist the board must move into an advisory mode
once the city balances three consecutive budgets without deficit borrowing. "Otherwise,
they'll never lift the wage freeze," said Meegan,
who accused control board members of trying to extend the life of an
authority that he says never should have been established in the first place.
"It's
a game they're playing, and it's a very transparent game to the people who
are affected by this wage freeze," he said. Brown
said he agrees with the police union on this issue, claiming the state law
setting up the control board always assumed that its active oversight role
would end after the city balances three consecutive budgets. The
control board declined to comment on the new legal challenge or the union's
advertising campaign. The
first round of ads targets the control board. Meegan
said the messages, which will change weekly, will aim to "educate"
the public on issues that he claimed have been distorted by editorials in The
Buffalo News. In
one radio commercial, an announcer asks: "How would you feel if your
company said no more raises, and, what's more, you can't strike to gain those
rights?" Brown
said he doesn't think the advertising blitz will have any effect
whatsoever on ongoing efforts by the city and the police union to devise a
plan that would spur the control board to give officers raises. But Meegan has ruled out additional concessions, saying the
union already agreed to one-officer patrol cars, schedule changes and other
cost-saving moves as part of a 2003 contract. Brown
said he remains cautiously optimistic about forging a plan acceptable to the
control board the end of summer. Union officials say pacts close
From The Republican, July 27, 2006 Also yesterday, Control Board officials and the
Massachusetts Teachers Association conducted a negotiating session to review
the association's settlement proposal for a contract for city teachers.
Control Board Executive Director Philip Puccia said
the sides agreed not to discuss the results of the meeting, which lasted for
several hours. The three unions are the largest labor groups in the city
still without a contract. The police and fire contracts expired three years
ago. "I'm very optimistic we will have an agreement
soon," said David A. Wells, president of Local 648 of the International
Association of Fire Fighters. "It has been a very long, difficult road.
I'm hoping the end is in sight." Thomas M. Scanlon, president of Local 364 of the
International Brotherhood of Police Officers, said the sides are getting
close to an agreement on the police contract. "Now it's up to the Control Board," he said.
"We have pretty much resolved the major issues." Puccia agreed that the sides are near settlement. Any agreement would
need votes of approval from the union membership. Most city employees, including police officers,
firefighters and teachers, have been under a wage freeze since July 2003. The union representatives for police and firefighters said
that one key remaining contractual issue is a proposal to switch all city
employees over to the less expensive state health insurance plan. Gov. W. Mitt Romney, as part of a bill aimed at expanding
the powers of the Control Board, is proposing that Changing to the state insurance plan could save the city
about $4 million in the first year, and reduce the employees' insurance costs
by $1.25 million, Puccia said. Scanlon said the union favors switching to the state plan
by adopting an existing state law rather than approving the governor's bill.
In addition, the union wants to ensure that existing retirees are not hurt by
the transfer, said Scanlon and Wells. Both union presidents said the long unresolved contracts
have hurt morale. "The frustration has been very high among members, and morale very low," Wells noted. Teachers have been without a contract since 2002. Both the Control Board and the teachers' union are waiting
for mediator Leslie Williamson to present his fact-finding report, which will
contain non-binding recommendations to move past the impasse. The Control Board plans to implement working conditions
for teachers in this fiscal year, based on its proposal, if a settlement is
not reached soon. City Council Waits To Decide On First Responder Pay Raises
From NBC13.com, July 25, 2006 Several councilors told NBC13 Tuesday they would vote to pass
the plan. Some said the raise is necessary because city responders are
leaving to go to higher paying jobs in other cities. Other councilors said they want more time to talk to the parties
involved. They will take up the issue again in five weeks. At that time, the council would need to recommend the raise to
the Jefferson County Personnel Board. If the increase passes, it would be a 15 percent raise over the
next three years and would take effect during the next fiscal year.
After 10 bargaining sessions and two meetings with a state
mediator, the Menlo Park Police Officers Association and the city have negotiated
a new two-year labor contract. The agreement includes increases in wages and health insurance
coverage for the 37 officers represented by the association. Both issues proved difficult during negotiations, and a state
mediator was "instrumental" in getting the two sides to reach an
agreement, said Glen Kramer, the city's personnel director. The new agreement will boost the average line officer's monthly
salary from about $6,572 to about $6,835 a 4 percent increase. The figure
doesn't include benefits. The new rate puts "We feel the needs of the employees have been met, and
we've stayed within the cost constraints of the city," Mr. Kramer said. The agreement also calls for the city to pay about 12 percent
more of officers' health insurance costs. For example, the city currently provides about $988 per month
for costs associated with a family health insurance plan, and the contract
calls for that figure to increase to about $1,106. Officers will continue to receive the state's top pension rate,
Mr. Kramer said. At age 50 they can retire and receive 90 percent of their
highest annual salary if they have worked 30 years or more as an officer. "We can certainly live with this agreement," said John
Noble, a labor relations consultant representing the police officers
association from the Pleasant Hill-based law firm of Rains, Lucia and
Wilkinson. The agreement was reached July 17, about a month after both parties
declared impasse and called in a state mediator. The City Council is scheduled to consider the agreement at its
meeting Tuesday, July 25. If approved by the council, the salary increases
will be retroactive to July 1. The council is
scheduled to meet at 7 p.m. in the council chambers at the |
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