Letter to the Mayor

ALS unit, paramedic pay, you think the union did that. Dude, get a grip. I hope you become the president of our union. Maybe you can get up a helo, or maybe a spaceship. So I guess when the city builds a new firedepartment on the north side of town that the union will take credit for that too. Haaaa

Well lets think about the EAb how many times has someone sent in amn idea to EAB and just have it shot down I know I personally have. Why because it was not to the liking of the Chief.
It doesn't matter what the troops want it only matters what the Chief wants. Also how many times and i can tell you it has been many that after the EAB nobody seems to care about telling the troops what went on or how the meeting went. The supervisors at least give us some idea of what went on in their meeting but nobody cares enough to get back about the EAB which is supposed to be about EMPLOYEES.

What does the Chief have to do with the EAB members not getting the word out to the officers? Sounds like the problem lies with the officers, not the Chief. Funny, how much information you think you will get back from the PCPD President of the PBA, most of your EAB members are for the union anyway. In reply to the Chief shooting down ideas/wants brought up by the EAB members, he wont have to do that once you go union. You can take the little everyday grips to them and let them get shot down by the City Manager for the same reason Chief shot them down, money!!!!!!!!!

Well said, "Show me". I wonder who the President of the Plant City Chapter of the PBA will be. I hope it's not someone who post on this site, cause da dont spek or spel bery good. Hail to the President of the Plant City Chapter of the PBA. Boy, will this be great entertainment, and I won't have to pay anything, dues, to see the show. Haaaa

To all, greetings and best wishes. It appears these are tough times for my brothers in blue. Whatever side of the fence you're on, it pains me to see, hear and read about it.

Listen, I left PCPD, leaving buds that I care about and love, (yes I used the "L" word). I never once had any intention of leaving after I got the handshake hiring me. I worked hard for the department, the citizens of the city and my buddy's on the squad, all of whom I knew I could count on.

Like most of us, I put myself on the line night after night, was aggressive in going after the bad guys and always did my best for my fellow officers. Then the light came on in my head when Matt Williams was murdered by that low-life scum-bag.

Myself and I think some 12-14 other PCPD officers, maybe more, grabbed our gear and went out there to try and catch/contain that murderer, along with an estimated 400-500 other officers from all over the state. The TPD Chief and his command staff were there, various S.O. heads and command staff. I saw Chiefs from small agencies working posts with their guys but on my third post assigment, well into the night, our Chief had not shown up. Capt. Wilson was the only command staff person I saw.

That was it for leadership and support from the department and it bothered me...a lot. To add horrible and substantial insult to injury, when some 10,000 officers, some from out of the state, came to honor their fallen brother-in-arms, the Chief was nowhere to be found. An officer who asked why he wasn't there to one of the very senior officers and the group of very senior officers he was standing with, was summarily called into the Chief's office the next day and given a totally different reason he was given by the officer when he first asked. What happened to Matt Williams and the lack of leadership and genuine caring exhibited by PCPD leadership, profoundly affected me and I decided to leave. I tearfully mulled it over for a few days and decided to put in for TPD.

After Matt Williams death, I was also lied to after a promise, sealed with the gratuitous handshake, was given to me by the Chief, which proved to be false. We get fired for being untruthful/lying don't we but I guess leadership by example is a thing of the past.

Here's what I know about the PBA so far;

1. It is not perfect because it's run by people.
2. It took work and substantial effort to get to where it is today and it didn't happen over night.
3. I feel much, much, much more protected and even if your chain of command dislikes you and wants to get rid of you, they have procedures and guidelines which must be followed and you have representation every step of the way from the PBA.

So having seen and worked on both sides of the fence, regardless of the color of the grass....I say,

STICK TO YOUR GUNS....STAND SHOULDER TO SHOULDER....VOTE IN THE PBA...GO TO THE COMMISSION MEETINGS IN MASS...BE HEARD....STAND FIRM.....HOLD-FAST!

Leadership, honesty and a genuine caring for the officers who do the sweating, bleeding and sometimes dying is what is required by the Chief and his command staff and they are lacking and all but absent at PCPD.

To all, greetings and best wishes. It appears these are tough times for my brothers in blue. Whatever side of the fence you're on, it pains me to see, hear and read about it.

Listen, I left PCPD, leaving buds that I care about and love, (yes I used the "L" word). I never once had any intention of leaving after I got the handshake hiring me. I worked hard for the department, the citizens of the city and my buddy's on the squad, all of whom I knew I could count on.

Like most of us, I put myself on the line night after night, was aggressive in going after the bad guys and always did my best for my fellow officers. Then the light came on in my head when Matt Williams was murdered by that low-life scum-bag.

Myself and I think some 12-14 other PCPD officers, maybe more, grabbed our gear and went out there to try and catch/contain that murderer, along with an estimated 400-500 other officers from all over the state. The TPD Chief and his command staff were there, various S.O. heads and command staff. I saw Chiefs from small agencies working posts with their guys but on my third post assigment, well into the night, our Chief had not shown up. Capt. Wilson was the only command staff person I saw.

That was it for leadership and support from the department and it bothered me...a lot. To add horrible and substantial insult to injury, when some 10,000 officers, some from out of the state, came to honor their fallen brother-in-arms, the Chief was nowhere to be found. An officer who asked why he wasn't there to one of the very senior officers and the group of very senior officers he was standing with, was summarily called into the Chief's office the next day and given a totally different reason he was given by the officer when he first asked. What happened to Matt Williams and the lack of leadership and genuine caring exhibited by PCPD leadership, profoundly affected me and I decided to leave. I tearfully mulled it over for a few days and decided to put in for TPD.

After Matt Williams death, I was also lied to after a promise, sealed with the gratuitous handshake, was given to me by the Chief, which proved to be false. We get fired for being untruthful/lying don't we but I guess leadership by example is a thing of the past.

Here's what I know about the PBA so far;

1. It is not perfect because it's run by people.
2. It took work and substantial effort to get to where it is today and it didn't happen over night.
3. I feel much, much, much more protected and even if your chain of command dislikes you and wants to get rid of you, they have procedures and guidelines which must be followed and you have representation every step of the way from the PBA.

So having seen and worked on both sides of the fence, regardless of the color of the grass....I say,

STICK TO YOUR GUNS....STAND SHOULDER TO SHOULDER....VOTE IN THE PBA...GO TO THE COMMISSION MEETINGS IN MASS...BE HEARD....STAND FIRM.....HOLD-FAST!

Leadership, honesty and a genuine caring for the officers who do the sweating, bleeding and sometimes dying is what is required by the Chief and his command staff and they are lacking and all but absent at PCPD.

Thank you very much for your input on the union. For the small group of you who still have yet to decide on what you want, I urge you to continue speaking with members of other unions, and educate yourselves.. One thing I can recomend is this. Talk to people who are involved in the union. Not just members, who provide little to no input, and refuse to help out when needed.

Dear Show Me,
As a what I now consider former EAB member - the reason u never heard back half the time was because the Chief had to approve all the minutes before they could be posted on PICS and he wasn't that interested in it. Secondly, to be honest since approx. April the answer to each and every topic we brought up was "I will take that into consideration" or "I will look into that". I don't know any EAB members that after the first few months felt like anything was being accomplished and that we were not wasting our time.

As some of our former co-workers now at TPD have advised, the union is not perfect because it is still run by imperfect human beings. I think in the long run the union is the way to go but its not gonna be easy for the first few years and the real difference might not be seen for 5-10 years. If you plan on a long career at PCPD, its worth your while to vote YES.

The answers that you mention for the EAB have been that way for several years. Look at the last time the minutes were updated on PICS.