Weekly Roundup: Your Pay, Your Job, Your Life
Ed. Note: Roundup and links courtesy of Ron Delord. Follow him on Twitter — @RonDeLord — for more police, fire and public employee labor news.
Toledo Police Union Votes Down 3-Year ContractThe union representing police patrolmen—which was once led by Mayor D. Michael Collins—voted down a proposed three-year contract that was hammered out last week with the mayor days before he suffered a cardiac arrest. Toledo Chief of Staff Robert Reinbolt and Toledo Police Patrolman’s Association President Dan Wagner said the 476-member union voted down the contract…
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Baltimore Police Union Questions Proposal for Tougher Officer Misconduct Penalties
The president of the union the represents Baltimore City police officers has denounced plans by Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake to seek legislation that would make it easier to punish police officers who break the law. FOP Lodge #3 President Gene Ryan released a statement Tuesday saying while his union does not stand for officers who misuse or abuse their…
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Omaha City Council OKs Pension Changes for Civilian Workers
It’s official: Civilian city employees hired after March 1 will participate in a new pension plan, one that functions more like a 401(k) plan. The pension changes, approved Tuesday by the Omaha City Council, mark a significant step in Mayor Jean Stothert’s goal of reducing employee costs and solving the city’s pension crisis. And, Stothert said, the new plan will …
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Police Accountability Measures Flood State Legislatures After Ferguson, Staten Island
More than a dozen states are considering new legislation aimed at increasing police accountability in the wake of incidents in Ferguson, Mo.; Staten Island, N.Y.; and Cleveland that left unarmed black men dead at the hands of officers. Dozens of bills addressing body cameras for police have been filed in at least 13 states. Other proposed measures would change the …
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Dallas Leaders Plan Campaign to Back Police, Raise Funds
Months after a sea of protesters flooded Dallas streets and freeways to protest police actions, a Dallas woman will unveil a plan Thursday to turn that tide. On Feb. 16 — Presidents Day — Toni Brinker Pickens and Mayor Mike Rawlings, Police Chief David Brown and other city leaders will launch Operation: Blue Shield, a fundraising effort for the Dallas …
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Battle Over Access to LAPD Body Cam Videos is Shaping Up
Ever since grainy images of the Rodney King incident were broadcast nearly 25 years ago, video recordings have come to be viewed by many as the ultimate evidence in cases of disputed police actions. The Los Angeles Police Department is about to take this concept to a new level by outfitting every officer with a body camera …
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Portland Police Chief Wants to Add Analysts, Tech Support Jobs
An outside consultant has found that the Portland Police Bureau’s 930-member force is understaffed by at least 24 people, including officers, detectives and sergeants. Officers’ average response time to emergency calls is slowing, expected to exceed the bureau’s five-minute goal by 50 seconds by the end of the current fiscal year. Portland Police Bureau response times, arrests rates Portland police …
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Missouri AG Urges Changes to Deadly Force Law
Missouri’s attorney general proposed Friday that it be illegal for police to use deadly force unless a suspect committed a violent felony or poses a serious threat to others, as part of recommendations responding to the fatal shooting of a black 18-year-old in Ferguson that sparked national protests. Attorney General Chris Koster also recommended a new …
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Sweet Pension Deal Sours for City Employees
City of Chicago retirees Mary J. Jones and Barbara Lomax took turns hobbling to the witness stand Friday in a Daley Center courtroom to help make the case against reducing city pension benefits. Jones, 62, and Lomax, 65, are among thousands of retirees whose annual cost-of-living increases took a trim Jan. 1 under a new state law intended to rescue …
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The Shrinking American Labor Union
24.2%: private sector union membership rate, 1973 6.6%: private sector union membership rate, 2014 Source: Barry T. Hirsch and David A. Macpherson A generation ago labor unions were often a familiar feature of the American workplace, but in private businesses across the country, unions have been shrinking. Today fewer than one in 15 private sector workers belongs to a union, …
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A Win-Win Deal for San Diego Police and City
The tentative contract extension announced Friday by San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer and the municipal police union represents a win almost all around. It ought to be ratified by the City Council and the union membership; there is, in fact, almost zero possibility it will be rejected. The mayor said the deal will cost the city $92 million over five …
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Rauner Eliminates ‘Fair Share’ Union Dues for State Workers
Taking another shot at public employee unions, Gov. Bruce Rauner said Monday he’s ending “fair share” union dues for state workers who have opted out of joining a union. At the same time, Rauner said the state will mount a case in federal court with the idea of having the U.S. Supreme Court rule that fair share union dues are …
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Body Worn Cameras Go to Court
Up to this point, law enforcement leaders have deployed body worn cameras into the field while, seemingly, managing any opposition from the rank-and-file and/or labor representatives. However, concerns are now being raised by police labor leaders regarding the conditions by which BWC’s will be implemented, as evidenced by a recent lawsuit filed by the Riverside County Deputy Sheriff’s Association. The …
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Mayor Parker ReachesNew Contract Agreement with Police Union
Mayor Annise Parker was joined by Houston Police Officers Union President Ray Hunt Monday morning to announce a proposed new contract for the rank and file at the Houston Police Department (HPD). The agreement, which requires ratification by union membership and City Council’s approval, addresses pay concerns that have hindered HPD’s ability to attract and retain officers. It also …
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St. Louis Aldermen Move Forward Civilian Oversight Board of Police
A proposal to create a civilian review board for city police, which stirred the ire of the police union on one side and protesters on the other, was approved by a committee of aldermen Monday largely unchanged from its original wording. The bill, which calls for seven appointed civilians to review complaints against police officers, was approved …
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Study: 401(k)-Style Public Pensions Cost More than Traditional Plans
Public worker unions and others who back traditional pensions over 401(k)-style plans got ammunition on Tuesday from a new study that shows U.S. state governments that made the switch did not achieve the predicted savings but rather lost money. The National Institute on Retirement Security (NERS), a non-profit group that has defended traditional public pensions, issued …
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Case Studies Find Increased Costs When States Switch From Pensions
A series of new case studies finds that states that shifted retirement plans from defined benefit (DB) pension plans to defined contribution (DC) 401(k)-type individual accounts experienced higher costs. …
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As Underfunded Pension System Doles Out Checks, Nutter Balks
Sometime as early as April, Philadelphia’s beleaguered pension fund will begin sending out $62 million in bonus checks to retirees. It will do so despite being woefully underfunded – it has less than 48 percent of its $10 billion in obligations – and sucking up an ever-growing portion of the city’s overall revenue. It is required to make the payments …
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Public Employee Unions Under Fire Again
Public-sector workers are under fire again—and not just from Republicans. Three years after Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker curtailed collective bargaining and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie cut pension benefits for public employees in the name of budget austerity, state and local politicians once again are moving to curtail public-sector unions. The most aggressive moves are coming from Illinois’ …
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How San Jose Took on the Unions and Saved Millions Through Pension Reform
“If a government can’t provide the core basic services, it’s failed in it’s mission,” says Pete Constant, a former member of the San Jose City Council who advocated for sweeping pension reform. “Our city had been in many years of budget deficits and there were many more coming in the future. And I just thought the financial decisions had been …
Audio Recording Catches Councilman Talking Against Public Safety Unions Lawsuits
The San Antonio Police Officers Association said Wednesday that a lawsuit filed by the city against public safety unions should be revoked immediately based on comments made by District 9 City Councilman Joe Krier at a public meeting. The union posted a short audio recording of Krier telling residents in his district that he believes the city …
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