A Call For a State-Wide United Union Committee

Florida is some what of an Anti Union state and every union seems busy fighting their own battles. With "Financial Urgency" in place their is no incentive for a city to ever keep a balanced budget -since their is no accountability for mismanagement and overspending. What incentives do politicians have to keep the books balanced throughout the year? Unfortunately none.

The domino effect is in place to tear down unions nationwide and the unions are fighting each battle independently. This is flawed logic since the core issues aren't being addressed or fought on the front lines.


Below is a map that reflects the last election and it looks almost hopeless right?
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/2010_Florida_gubernatorial_election_county_map.png/120px-2010_Florida_gubernatorial_election_county_map.png


It's a divide and conquer strategy- Sociology and economics, a strategy to gain or maintain power

I call for the FOP to Unite with all unions Florida wide and create a committee with all Union heads as a chair person. If each union donated .50c per member per pay period to the united Union committee we can effectively fight the BIG BATTLE. Primarily anti-union opponents regardless of their political party and give us back our rights to bargain.

Union numbers are declining rapidly and we need to make an effort to reverse this process. We are losing the local battle due to the lack of fighting the big battle up state. I understand not all unions have the same agenda but we all have one thing in common and that is the our bargaining rights. We do little to nothing fighting just the local battle alone.





the previous map looks hopeless right? Well actually it's not if you look deeper.
Below is an example how we can target weak districts and regain the house and maybe one day the Governor.

http://img810.imageshack.us/img810/9882/floridaj.jpg



here is just a sample of the unions in florida
there are plenty more who will be willing to fight for a common cause

» AFSCME - American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees

» PBA - American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees

» FOP - FRATERNAL ORDER OF POLICE

» IUPA - INTERNATIONAL UNION OF POLICE ASSOCIATIONS

» ATF - AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS

» IAFF - INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF FIRE FIGHTERS

» PAT - PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION OF TEACHERS

» CWA - Communication Workers of America

» LIUNA - Laborers International Union of North America

Our union wont even tell us what they do with our money and are to busy fighting their personal battles

Some of you people who post things are so ridiculous and uninformed that it is pathetic. The police department, including the FOP work for the city of Miami and the commission. That means, that the commissioners have the ultimate right under the charter to set employment terms and conditions. This is done under what is known as collective bargaining. If the city doesn't want to bargain, then there is nothing that the FOP can do about it. While much of this is coming from a vindictive mayor, he does have the SUPPORT of a majority of the commission. And under the "financial urgency" statute, they have that right to impose terms. The only light in the tunnel would be trying to prove to a judicial authority how the city can impose a financial urgency when in fact the city LOWERED the millage rate.

A recall to remove the mayor will go "no where." Despite the fact that the FOP does not have the $500,000 or so to conduct a recall effort. Try getting a lot of cops out on their off-days to stand on a street corner or shopping center to gather required signatures. The mayor has the support of the citizens. It makes no difference how many assistants he hires just as long as their pocketbooks are not affected. The average income of the residents of the city is somewhere around $25,000 a year. The citizens do not want to hear us come to cry to them that the commissioners want to lower our pensions or charge us for a take-home car. They don't want to hear us complain that the mayor wants to lower our $70,000 a year salary by 10%, when they are out of work or making minimum wage. They don't want to hear that if we get a 10% pay cut that we might have trouble making the payments on our $280,000 house or new car. The majority of our people want to switch to a 401k instead of the defined pension plan that we enjoy. Ladies and gentlemen, the public in general and the citizens in specific, are not our friends! What is happening to our police department is happening to departments all over the country. Hollywood Police suffered a 13% decrease and their PBA is one of the strongest in the state. They couldn't stop this from happening. Neither can North Miami Beach, who are faced with laying off as much as 20% of the force. Their union IUPA, if powerless to stop this if and when it happens. The coty commissions have the ULTIMATE authority in ALL city functions, including the police departments.

It makes NO difference who is in charge of the FOP. Aguilar, Ortiz or even Kerr of some of the other wannabees would fare no better. The outcome would still be the same regardless of who is in charge.

You people seem to think that the meeting on Aug. 24th will end all of the problems and that by a simple vote of the majority that the board can be removed. That is far from the truth. An organization runs on a set of by-laws, and to change even a single by-law is a months long process. To remove a board member, beit the president or even the chaplain requires that that person having committed a VIOLATION of a SPECIFIC by-law. The person making the accusation must come forward and personally present his accusation. In a trial situation, the board member has the RIGHT to present his defense and only then would the membership be allowed to vote. Plus a member of the STATE FOP lodge must be present to over see the procedure and to insure that the proper process is followed. The process cannot be done in a single meeting.

What will happen is that the board will "stack the meeting" with their confidants and cronies and there will be a lot of retirees present, who generally side with the board. The usual number of cops will show up and scream beer fueled nonsense. They will be ruled "out of order" by the president and threatened to an azz-whipping by Casanovas. No extra members will show up because of the same old tired reasons, such as I have my off-duty job to go to or another function.

It's the same loudmouth people making the slamming this and that but they are usually the last ones who want to get involved in a movement to change things for the better.

And by the way, I am not a fan of the city administration or the FOP, just an affected member who is tired of all of the rhetoric.

Some of you people who post things are so ridiculous and uninformed that it is pathetic. The police department, including the FOP work for the city of Miami and the commission. That means, that the commissioners have the ultimate right under the charter to set employment terms and conditions. This is done under what is known as collective bargaining. If the city doesn't want to bargain, then there is nothing that the FOP can do about it. While much of this is coming from a vindictive mayor, he does have the SUPPORT of a majority of the commission. And under the "financial urgency" statute, they have that right to impose terms. The only light in the tunnel would be trying to prove to a judicial authority how the city can impose a financial urgency when in fact the city LOWERED the millage rate.

A recall to remove the mayor will go "no where." Despite the fact that the FOP does not have the $500,000 or so to conduct a recall effort. Try getting a lot of cops out on their off-days to stand on a street corner or shopping center to gather required signatures. The mayor has the support of the citizens. It makes no difference how many assistants he hires just as long as their pocketbooks are not affected. The average income of the residents of the city is somewhere around $25,000 a year. The citizens do not want to hear us come to cry to them that the commissioners want to lower our pensions or charge us for a take-home car. They don't want to hear us complain that the mayor wants to lower our $70,000 a year salary by 10%, when they are out of work or making minimum wage. They don't want to hear that if we get a 10% pay cut that we might have trouble making the payments on our $280,000 house or new car. The majority of our people want to switch to a 401k instead of the defined pension plan that we enjoy. Ladies and gentlemen, the public in general and the citizens in specific, are not our friends! What is happening to our police department is happening to departments all over the country. Hollywood Police suffered a 13% decrease and their PBA is one of the strongest in the state. They couldn't stop this from happening. Neither can North Miami Beach, who are faced with laying off as much as 20% of the force. Their union IUPA, if powerless to stop this if and when it happens. The coty commissions have the ULTIMATE authority in ALL city functions, including the police departments.

It makes NO difference who is in charge of the FOP. Aguilar, Ortiz or even Kerr of some of the other wannabees would fare no better. The outcome would still be the same regardless of who is in charge.

You people seem to think that the meeting on Aug. 24th will end all of the problems and that by a simple vote of the majority that the board can be removed. That is far from the truth. An organization runs on a set of by-laws, and to change even a single by-law is a months long process. To remove a board member, beit the president or even the chaplain requires that that person having committed a VIOLATION of a SPECIFIC by-law. The person making the accusation must come forward and personally present his accusation. In a trial situation, the board member has the RIGHT to present his defense and only then would the membership be allowed to vote. Plus a member of the STATE FOP lodge must be present to over see the procedure and to insure that the proper process is followed. The process cannot be done in a single meeting.

What will happen is that the board will "stack the meeting" with their confidants and cronies and there will be a lot of retirees present, who generally side with the board. The usual number of cops will show up and scream beer fueled nonsense. They will be ruled "out of order" by the president and threatened to an azz-whipping by Casanovas. No extra members will show up because of the same old tired reasons, such as I have my off-duty job to go to or another function.

It's the same loudmouth people making the slamming this and that but they are usually the last ones who want to get involved in a movement to change things for the better.

And by the way, I am not a fan of the city administration or the FOP, just an affected member who is tired of all of the rhetoric.

HES RIGHT IN SOME THINGS. HOWEVER THIS DOESN'T EXCUSE THE UNION FOR THEIR NONE ACTIONS UNDER THIS ADMINISTRATION.WHY WERENT THEY LIKE THIS UNDER MANNY DIAZ? HE NEVER TOOK A RED CENT FROM US. HOWEVER THE MAN COULDNT TAKE A CRAP WITHOUT AN FOP DEMONSTRATION BEING RAMMED UP HIS ASS FOR NOT GIVING US A RAISE.

1- Forget the state - that will not get you anywhere.
2- the recall of the mayor has some legs: If cops join with the fire dept - who has more time and manpower, we could get the signatures. At least it sends the clear message to the mayor and the commission, and in the process exposes their wrongdoing - which is the last thing they want. Even if it goes to court, it would place the mayor and administration on the spot for the misfeasance and malfeasance they have committed financially in the city of Miami.
3- yes the FOP board could be removed - they do not share with the membership their real expenses; they have abandonned the membership in the fight over Expo; they have done nothing to address the divisive environment on the force; they have remained mute during a moment of crisis; they even messed up the protest at the AAA and sold out. They have relinquished their true responsibilities to the membership.
4- if no one is looking out for the cops, it's time the cops did on their own. Recall the mayor, recall the FOP board and get the message out.

Our union wont even tell us what they do with our money and are to busy fighting their personal battles

What you need is to get some math skills and go check the lodge books. They are open to inspection to any member, any time. But you need to be able to add and subtract so you keep crying om here about not knowing where the money went. Your a lame azzhole stuck on stupid.

Our union wont even tell us what they do with our money and are to busy fighting their personal battles

What you need is to get some math skills and go check the lodge books. They are open to inspection to any member, any time. But you need to be able to add and subtract so you keep crying om here about not knowing where the money went. Your a lame azzhole stuck on stupid.

You say that but a majority of the members want to have access to a monthly itemized statements already prepared. Why does each member have to individually ask

Our union wont even tell us what they do with our money and are to busy fighting their personal battles

What you need is to get some math skills and go check the lodge books. They are open to inspection to any member, any time. But you need to be able to add and subtract so you keep crying om here about not knowing where the money went. Your a lame azzhole stuck on stupid.
Scarola your day is coming Tubby! :devil: :devil: :devil:

uniting is a good idea. I'm tired of seeing all these different unions and organizations for us cops. We should all belong to one union only, the FOP. We need to stop breaking off and starting hispanic officers unions and colored officers unions, we should all just be in one and all join together in the fight. God bless all of you in your future struggles.