Whoever said, “A few bad apples can bring the whole place down” knew what they were talking about. Here’s one story that certainly reinforces the that notion. According to The Boston Globe, 20 Massachuetts State Troopers are being investigated for theft of overtime pay. Reporters Mark Arsenault, Travis Andersen, and Shelley Murphy write: “In another black […]
Archive for October, 2016
Keeping a journal? If not, why not?
Nobody on the planet has a more interesting job than a law enforcement officer. Every day you are in the ring, struggling with people during the most dramatic moments of their lives. And there’s all the funny things that happen too – stuff people would not believe unless they were there. If you are not […]
Big bucks going to support working folks
21 foundations have kicked in millions to support higher pay and better working conditions As America’s labor unions have lost members and clout, new types of worker advocacy groups have sprouted nationwide, and they have started to get on businesses’ nerves — protesting low wages at Capital Grille restaurants, for instance, and demonstrating outside […]
Retiree healthcare in trouble
Pensions are just part of the problem. Health care is another dark cloud circling. As state and local governments focus on how to fix their pension problems, a recent report demonstrates the dramatic measures large American cities will have to take to address another issue: woefully underfunded retiree health-care liabilities. According to Charles Chieppo, a […]
Superbowl security: an overwhelming task
Effort requires coordination between hundreds of agencies, thousands of police officers and security guards, and lots of technology As is the case for other major sporting events, securing the Super Bowl is a complex and nerve-racking task that involves the coordination of many law enforcement agencies, the use of technologies like cameras and radiation […]
Our pensions are not an “entitlement,” accurate term is “deferred” salary
This is a well written and must read opinion piece by Jacky Parks, president of the Fresno Police Officers Association educating the public as to the impact of the “Reed Amendment” that would eliminate the state constitutional guarantee protecting vested pension rights. It is critical that public employee unions stay engaged in a public […]
Unions lose round in fight over forced breathalyzer tests
In New York City a lawsuit filed by the Sergeants and Patrol Officers unions charging that mandatory Breathalyzer tests for officers who had used their guns violated collective bargaining agreements has been tossed out. The policy was adopted in 2008 after the Sean Bell shooting in Queens where one detective—who never used his weapon– had […]
Foundations to save Detroit pensions
Hats off to the Ford Foundation, the Kresge Foundation and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, among others who have pledged to pool $330 million, which would essentially relieve the city-owned Detroit Institute of Arts museum of its responsibility to sell some of its collection to help Detroit pay its $18 billion […]
Controversy erupts over police union video posting
Submitted by Ron DeLord The Omaha police union is facing criticism for posting a video online of a toddler being cursed at and being encouraged to curse. Union officials say they wanted to stimulate discussion about problems in the community and show what officers encounter. Critics say there better ways to do that without […]
What does West Virginia chemical spill mean for law enforcement?
Environmental police officers do an outstanding job with the resources at their disposal. But sometimes the scale of the crime, accident or emergency is more than any local law enforcement agency can handle. What do we really mean when we invoke the term “public safety?” Like a lot of terms that we think we understand, […]
New Mexico sends Koch brothers packing
Great victory in a key state occurred when after endless defeats the Koch brothers decided to pack up and move elsewhere. Make sure they get the same welcome in your city or town. Read more.
You’re fired! And you can find it on Twitter.
Hey, we can all agree more transparency is probably a good thing. But announcing a law enforcement officer’s termination on Twitter? That may be going a little too far. Here’s a sample of a Dallas Police Chief David O. Brown Tweet about a fired officer: I have terminated 911 Call Taker Moises […]
You are paying more
Any time a city council, manager or mayor says you have not paid your fair share to help ease your city, town or county’s ongoing financial crisis, here’s some ammunition to fight back. It turns out that you have been paying a lot more out of your own pocket for the same level […]
Celebrating a 8.55% percent pay hike
You could hear the enthusiasm in Jim Christie’s voice as he announced to his members that they would be getting a raise of 8.55 percent in their next paycheck. Both civilian and sworn OPPA employees will start receiving the increase beginning with the pay period than ends on January 16. The pay hike will be […]
Getting taxpayers on your side
The Ontario Provincial Police Association has been a leader when it comes to developing positive public relations. This moving video is just one of several they have produced to establish closer relations with the community. If your association has done something similar send the link to cynthia@pubsecalliance.com and we’ll pass it around.
Detective sentenced for revenge photos, videos on Facebook
A 17-year-veteran Seattle police detective was arrested after he posted sexually explicit pictures and videos of an ex-lover on a fake Facebook page after the woman revealed the affair to the detective’s wife. Detective David Blackmer plead guilty to the cyberstalking charges. Blackmer originally was arrested on investigation of second-degree identity theft — a felony […]
Billionaire mayor thinks your pension is too generous
Multibillionaire Michael Bloomberg, took his last opportunity as mayor of New York City to repeat the propaganda and lies that it is the pension and health care costs for cops, firefighters, teachers and nurses that pose the gravest threat to the city’s budget. In a speech to the Economic Club of New York during his […]
County will pick up pension costs
There was some good news (hopefully) recently from Stanislaus County in California when it was announced that deputies would pay their share of the monthly cost for pension benefits through paycheck deductions, but the county would give them a 13.4 percent salary increase to cover the expense. In what officials are calling a one-to-one conversion, […]
John Arnold is your enemy
How should one feel about a man who walks away with $3 billion from a corporation that looted its stockholders, whose major executives went to jail, whose employees lost their life savings? How should one feel about his efforts to cut the pensions of people who have retired on $40,000 a year? By Diane Ravitch […]
Passionate about pensions
This opinion piece, written by Warren J. Schott for the San Antonio Express-News makes a thoughtful, well written and passionate argument for continuing a sound pension program for the people who don a uniform and risk it all to keep us safe. Great concepts here to adapt for your own opinion piece. Police, […]
The looting of your pension funds
An explosive investigative report on the looting of your pension. Matt Tiabbi’s research reveals that cuts to your pension that you earned under contractual agreement equal fees paid to Wall Street to manage your city, town, county or province’s investments. This is an illegal transfer of earned wealth from cops, teachers and firefighters to Wall […]
Weekly News – Jan. 7, 2014
Mixed support for new right-to-work law in Michigan It won’t be too much of a surprise to most of our readers to hear that a survey polling government officials in Michigan revealed that 60 percent of Republicans and just 21 percent of Democrats polled were supportive of the new right-to-work law that went into effect […]
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