|
|
2006 OUTLOOK FOR NEGOTIATIONS ORDER
A COPY TODAY (It is free) (click on the Link above)
Nassau Cuts Pay of
Officials in Police Union From
the New York Times, November 23, 2005 GARDEN
CITY, N.Y., Nov. 22 - The Nassau County executive, Thomas R. Suozzi, has ordered substantial cuts in pay for the top
seven officials in the county's police union, who receive from $149,000 to
$171,000 a year, all paid by county taxpayers. Mr.
Suozzi has zeroed in on compensation awarded to the
union officials by an arbitrator about a year ago for overtime, promotion pay
and moonlighting income that officials say they lose because of union duties. Calling
those sums "a gross abuse of taxpayers' money," Mr. Suozzi ordered the $171,000 salary of the union president
reduced by $47,000, and the salaries of the other six officials, about
$149,000, reduced by about $31,000. The changes start with this week's
paychecks. Mr.
Suozzi, who is paid $109,000 a year, said he was
not cutting the pay because the officials make more than he does. In fact,
the average police officer eclipses him, earning $110,000 a year, including
overtime. Officials
of the union, the Nassau Police Benevolent Association, and its lawyer did
not return calls seeking comment. Mr. Suozzi said
he expected the union to take legal action to restore the sums, which he will
oppose. Mr.
Suozzi has taken on the union in a series of
battles. They tangled over contract negotiations and staffing, as he pushed
to control costs while the union accused him of undermining public safety. The
union president, Gary DelaRaba, has a base pay of
$88,293. Stipends for longevity, shift differential, holidays, education and
equipment bring his total pay to about $124,000, county administrators say.
The compensation for lost overtime, promotion and off-duty work added about
$47,000. A
lawyer hired to defend the county's action, Terry O'Neil, said of the
compensation: "To me, this is pay for not working. The rest of the world
doesn't work like this." Police raise specter of strike From The Republican, November 23, 2005 SPRINGFIELD - The head of the patrolmen's union said
yesterday officers are considering going on strike for the first time in
history - even though such a move is illegal - because they are exasperated
with the city's position in contract negotiations. "Unfortunately, it may have to come to that
because we're being ignored," said union president Thomas M. Scanlon,
who said the chances of the union striking are "50-50." "That's a big step to take because we all
feel a big responsibility to being there. We'd hate to have to take that
step," said Scanlon, a patrolman and president of Local 364,
International Brotherhood of Police Officers. Patrolmen have been unable to reach a new
contract with the city since the last one expired on June 30, 2003. Like most municipal workers, police have gone
without a pay raise since then because of a wage freeze imposed in response
to the city's budget crisis. Officials with the Police Department and
Springfield Finance Control Board said they doubted officers would strike. Such officials said they found it hard to believe
patrolmen would violate the nature of their duty and break the law by
striking. Scanlon's discussion of a strike comes days after
the president of the teachers union, the city's
largest at 2,600 members, began saying educators might strike because of
their contract logjam. Springfield teachers last struck in 1980. Some
were arrested but none lost jobs. Springfield police have never gone on strike,
according to Frances Gagnon, former chairwoman of the city Historical
Commission. Public employees are prohibited from striking
under Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 150E, Section
9A. But Scanlon said that just as it would be illegal
for the region's largest police force to strike (the union has 382 members), the union feels the city already has broken the law. The
city has failed to provide officers with contractually stipulated pay raises
and has failed to bargain in good faith on a new contract, he said. Sgt. John M. Delaney, spokesman for acting Police
Commissioner William J. Fitchet, said Scanlon's
strike talk runs counter to the views he is hearing from patrolmen, however
upset they are at the stalemate. "They're not going to go on strike. ... I
think it's saber-rattling," Delaney said. Philip Puccia,
executive director of the control board, said talk of a patrolmen strike is
coming "out of left field." "For them to talk about something like that,
I just cannot believe it," Puccia said. Puccia
said the control board contacted the patrolmen's union three times in the
last week to schedule negotiating sessions, without success. The board also
tried to arrange meetings in September and October, he said. "We want a negotiated settlement with the
Springfield patrolmen's union sooner rather than later," Puccia said. In response to the possibility of teachers'
striking, Puccia had said the control board would
react with "the harshest penalties" the law allows. As for what the control board would do if police
strike, Puccia said, "The board would take
whatever action is required. But I don't believe it." The state established the five-member control
board in July 2004 because Springfield was overwhelmed by its financial
freefall. The board has the power to overrule local officials on budgetary
decisions. The city is running a deficit of $6.5 million in
the budget of $452.8 million. That's down from the previous fiscal year's
deficit of $21 million. Patrol union lawyer Kevin B. Coyle disputed Puccia's assertions about the control board's bargaining
and willingness to meet. Coyle wouldn't comment on whether he felt
officers would strike, but said, "What's the sense of making another
contract with these guys when they feel they can abrogate it whenever they're
in trouble?" In June 1990, the patrolmen's union got national
attention by picketing the Democratic State Convention at the Civic Center
downtown. Mayor talks
tough to unions Engineers,
architects to picket at LAX; seek same deal as utility workers From the LA Daily News, November 23, 2005 Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and other
city officials vowed Tuesday to stand their ground against demands from city
unions for deals on par with the lucrative contract awarded two months ago to
Department of Water and Power employees. In the first public sign that other city workers' expectations
have soared because of the DWP workers' deal -
raises up to 6 percent a year, depending on inflation - the Engineers and
Architects Association announced plans for a massive demonstration at Los
Angeles International Airport on Sunday, one of the busiest travel days of
the year, when disruptions could create havoc for tens of thousands of
passengers. Leaders of other unions said the DWP
deal is weighing heavily on their own plans for contract proposals and has
prompted their members to expect pay increases matching those for utility
workers, who already are the highest paid municipal employees. "It would be irresponsible of me, as chief executive of
this city, to provide a raise anywhere near what they're asking for at a time
when the city is facing a $248 million shortfall," Villaraigosa
said. He said he would not be influenced by the fact the Engineers and
Architects Association was in the first group of employee unions that broke
away and endorsed him in this year's election. "That has nothing to do with this. I am willing to sit down
and negotiate with them. I won't demonize them, but I also won't jeopardize
the health of the city." Hundreds of members of the EAA packed
City Council chambers Tuesday and chanted, "Equal pay for equal work,"
while their union leader announced plans to picket at LAX. "We just want the same deal that was given DWP workers, where many of my people are doing the same
work," said Robert Aquino, head of the 8,000-member EAA
union whose members work in city building services and for city facilities
including airports and harbors. Aquino said the last offer to his union was for no raise the
first year, 2.5 percent the second and 2.5 percent the third. In the DWP deal negotiated when James Hahn was still mayor but
approved under Villaraigosa, the 8,000 members of
the DWP's International Brotherhood of Electrical
Workers, Local 18, got a five-year deal with guaranteed raises of at least
16.8 percent - and potentially as much as 28 percent. "My people would be losing money just based on the amount
the consumer price index has gone up," said Aquino, who said the EAA wants the same terms the DWP
workers got, including 3.5 percent annual raises plus escalators that could
boost those figures. The controversial DWP deal has raised
heated questions about union-wage parity - as well as fears that it could set
the stage for further labor showdowns. "Anyone could see this coming," said Councilman Dennis
Zine, who chairs the City Council's Personnel
Committee and opposed the DWP contract. "When
we approved the DWP contract, we raised the bar for
all the other unions." Villaraigosa said a key
difference between the DWP and EAA
situations is that the utility workers had already accepted an offer and
ratified a tentative agreement before he was mayor. "I agreed with the council action on that because I
believed then, and I believe now, to not do so would have been an unfair
labor practice. This is different. I'm involved now in the offer and the
negotiations, and I have a responsibility to make sure we pay our workers a
fair wage, but also that we are responsible to the taxpayers." City Administrative Officer Bill Fujioka, however, said each
union's contract has to stand on its own. "We have made a fair offer to EAA,
the same that we gave every other ... unit in the city," except police
and firefighters, Fujioka said. "They should not look at the DWP contract as a precedent. It was a separate contract,
just as this is." Julie Butcher, general manager of Service Employees
International Union, Local 347, already has demanded a review of citywide pay
policies in the wake of the DWP deal. The SEIU earlier this year approved a contract giving a total of
6.25 percent in wage increases over three years - but no increase during the
first year because city officials said they could not afford more. The union for 10,000 of the city's lowest-paid employees also
served notice that it expects to see compensation in the future for its
willingness to accept the contract terms that the EAA
now is rejecting. Butcher said Tuesday that she is planning to take a tougher
stance in the next round of negotiations as a result of the DWP contract. "The DWP contract has forever
changed union negotiations in the city. Employees are upset that one group is
treated differently from other city workers. Either we are one city or we
aren't." Police and firefighter unions also have upcoming contract
negotiations with the city, though neither union has developed a formal
proposal yet, officials said. "We are taking it all into consideration, but as of right
now, we haven't developed our proposal to submit to the city," said Ted Nonini of United Firefighters of Los Angeles City. Bob Baker, president of the Los Angeles Police Protective
League, said no proposals have been drawn up yet, "but the DWP contract certainly raises expectations for our
members." Jack Kyser, chief economist of the
Economic Development Corp., said the DWP contract
should have served as a major warning, along with the power shown by unions
in the special election this month. "The unions feel emboldened and, if you talk to people
around the state, officials at all levels are concerned about the impact of
salary talks this year," Kyser said. Still, Councilman Jack Weiss, chairman of the council's Public
Safety Committee, questioned the tactics being proposed by the EAA. "If their goal is to win friends and influence people, I'm
not sure bothering people when they return home from Thanksgiving is the way
to do it." San Leandro
police will get 5 percent raise next year City
employers, managers still in contract negotiations with officials From the Daily Review, November 23, 2005 SAN LEANDRO — After forgoing a raise earlier this year to help
out with the city's budget deficit, the San Leandro Police Officers'
Association soon will get a $531,000 increase in wages and benefits. During its Monday night meeting, the City Council passed a
resolution approving a memorandum of understanding on the association's
proposed contract, covering the 2006 calendar year. San Leandro operates with about 85 active officers, even though
the city's population has grown by more than 10,000 people in the past 10 years. The major elements of the tentative contract include, but are
not limited to, the following: Wages: a 5 percent
increase effective at the beginning of the year. Health and welfare:
continued city contribution equal to the Kaiser North medical insurance
premium and dental coverage. The city and police officers' association will
reopen this section for negotiations during 2006. Holidays: Any unused
holidays are to be paid at the end of each calendar year. Uniforms: The amount
allotted for uniforms will increase from $1,000 to $1,050 annually. Union representatives from the San LeandroPolice
Officers' Association were not available for comment Tuesday afternoon. The San Leandro City Employees' Association and the San Leandro
Management Organization, which also did not get raises this year, are still
in contract negotiations with city officials. Spokeswoman Jane McCrea said
their contracts should be ratified sometime in December. In June, the council passed its budget for the 2005-06 fiscal year. To balance the budget, which included a $3.1 million
deficit, the city had to dip into its reserves for the fourth consecutive
year. To prevent that from happening again, the city is expected to
place one or two initiatives on the June 2006 general election ballot that
would increase the business license or emergency medical services taxes. Council approves police union contract From the Claremore Daily Progress,
November 22, 2005 It’s four and half months behind
schedule, but Claremore law enforcers have a new contract for 2005-2006. Claremore City Council members approved
a current contract with the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 112 Monday night,
but failed to come to an agreement with the firefighter’s union. Police Union President Milburn Litterell said they are pleased with the deal they cut
for the membership. “Our main objective is to make this a
career department instead of a stepping stone department,” Litterell said. The adjustments in the department’s
step pay plan approved Monday is definitely a move in the right direction, he
said. Overall city police enforcers will
receive a two percent pay increase. The other changes will allow a career
law enforcer to “reach the top of the (pay) scale” in 15 years instead of 20.
Top pay will be around $38,000 to $40,000. “It will also provide a significant pay
increase when they reach the five-year mark,” said Litterell.
That makes Claremore’s Police
Department competitive with other law enforcement agencies such as the
Oklahoma Highway Patrol. “You can’t really put a price on the
value of a five-year officer compared to a rookie,” Litterell
said. He said it takes six months to get a new officer trained. “We believe negotiations went very
well,” Litterell said. “We want to try to come to
an agreement on next year’s contract before July. I don’t see a problem doing
that.” Monday’s approval was a turnaround
from earlier negotiations this year on an outstanding contract for 2004-2005.
The Council and police union finally
came to an agreement and a 2.9 percent wage increase was approved at a
special August meeting. The 2004-2005 contract
placed the starting salary for a non-certified Claremore police officer at
$29,272 and certified officers at $30,897. The Council agreed to continue
negotiations with the city firefighters.
From the Toledo Blade, November 19,
2005
The pact, which must be approved by
the university trustees, calls for 3 percent raises each year, in addition to
a $1.80 hourly pay hike for the first year. Dispatchers would receive the
same 3 percent raises, and a 65-cent hourly pay increase for the first year
of the contract. BGSU and the police union have been negotiating since the spring. The union president said he expected
the trustees to vote on the proposal Dec. 2. The union vote followed an afternoon
demonstration by BGSU student Luke Moneypenny, who works at the police station. He stood
outside the student union for three hours - wearing only a T-shift and shorts
to attract attention - and collected more than 100 signatures from students
who said they supported the police. City considering trust to
manage health insurance Annual costs have
increased in double digits From
The Norman Transcript, November 22, 2005
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
Copyright ã POLICEPAY.NET,
Inc. 2005 All Rights Reserved |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
The POLICEPAY Journal
Published
by:
POLICEPAY.NET,
Inc.
(405)
234-2235