Eric and I met with the Chief on Monday. We discussed the recent loss of several off-duty jobs due to the new contract. The Chief stated he would call several off-duty employers to clarify the contract with them and determine why they no longer want to hire Raleigh police officers. We discussed several of the off-duty employers he made contact with and provided correct information to these employers about the new contract. There appears to be some misinformation about how the contract reads and what requirements the employer must adhere to. Our goal as a union, is for officers to have as much off-duty employment as possible and to secure as many jobs as possible. It is clear the Chief did make an effort to get these off-duty jobs back for us.

I know we have lost a good deal of off-duty jobs but I have not heard of too many complaints of the lack of off-duty. If you have lost off-duty jobs and are not able to find other off-duty please let me know. I am concerned about what may happen to off-duty when the hourly rate is increased to $35. At the same time I do believe we deserve that rate of pay. Please let me know if you are in need of off-duty. I am attempting to gauge where we stand with off-duty.

We also discussed extra duty through the city, or through federal grants. This is similar to off-duty and is a great opportunity for officers to take advantage of overtime pay, something we have not seen at the Raleigh police department in a long time. The Chief said he believes this extra duty will continue to be available for officers in the future and may even become more abundant.

Finally, I am considering to reschedule the RPPA meeting days and time. Please give me some feedback on days and times that may accommodate your schedule if you will like to attend more meetings. The Teamster Local 391 meeting will be Saturday, Sept. 18, 10:00 a.m. at the Teamster Union Hall.

Thanks for your support.

Rick Armstrong

Last week I sent an email out regarding the proposed budget. While the budget was not what we had hoped for it did maintain some of our important benefits including the educational incentive and longevity pay, both were on the table for possible elimination. From your responses and what we discussed at the union meeting last week we determined it was best not to request any additional raises this year. Tonight, I will speak in front of the council with Keith Wilder, IAFF President to discuss a long term plan to help reduce our health insurance costs. These costs have consistently gone up every year for the past several years. It is important that our unions work with the city to develop a strategy to lower these rising costs. Our local has worked with other companies in the past to lower health insurance costs. Both the union and the city need work in collaboration to make this happen. Our goal tonight is to begin that relationship.

Thanks for your support.

Rick Armstrong

There was very good news at our Teamster local meeting this morning. The Employer-Employee Cooperation Act was introduced in the Senate this week and is likely to pass. A similar bill was introduced in the House earlier this month and also has enough votes to pass. President Obama is expected to sign the bill into law once the bill passes both chambers. This is truly monumental. The primary goal of the Raleigh Police Protective Association since our inception in 1998 was to gain collective bargaining rights for police officers. Over the past decade we have been working hard to pass collective bargaining. One of the main reasons we joined the Teamsters was the experience and power they have in negotiating contracts. Now we are on the verge of being the first public sector employees in the state of North Carolina to work with a contract. Once the bill is passed a vote will be taken to determine which union will represent Raleigh police officers (only one union can negotiate a contract). With well over 500 members I expect our union will be representing our officers.

Although this sounds very promising, nothing is a guarantee in politics. We still have work to do and there is still strong opposition. The League of Municipalities, the North Carolina Sheriffs Association, and the National League of Cities are adamantly opposed to this legislation and are working fiercely against it. Fortunately our unions are winning this battle but the opposition has one many in the past.

I will keep you all updated on this legislation.

Thanks for your support.

Rick Armstrong

Below is an email from Narley Cashwell, President of the PBA, to his members. I have never been critical of the PBA in emails and have made numerous efforts to work in collaboration with the PBA to promote and support the working cop. It is unfortunate and disappointing to read the PBA continuing to attack the Teamsters and making feeble attempts to steal our members. The leadership of the Teamsters and the RPPA devote our time and energy to helping our members not criticizing other organizations that we should be working with. We build coalitions to gain political strength not alienate our allies. As many of you know we are currently working with the firefighters union to gain a physical fitness incentive. We are also members of NAPO(National Association of Police Organizations) and are fighting to pass a collective bargaining bill. I will be flying to DC tomorrow to meet with the president of NAPO and discuss our strategy. NAPO represents hundreds of thousands of cops across the country. Our union is about solidarity, about standing up for your fellow brother or sister and passing legislation to support police officers not discrediting other organizations to gain more members. I would like to comment on the inaccuracies and outrageous statements Narley made below.

Membership is detrimental in our survival as an organization. We need more members. The only thing the Teamsters can pitch to recruits is they have more members and this is a huge hurdle to overcome. We are working hard to overcome this hurdle. We continue to tell new prospects about our legislative advantages and accomplishments, our legal benefits and accomplishments and our accomplishments within the department. Most noticeably with the off duty policy and retirement issue. It is hard to get them to see that the Teamsters have more members, but we have a better message. Please talk to your fellow officers about the PBA and it’s benefits. There are a lot of officers on the fence, but just need some encouragement to switch over. We are still looking for members to be representatives in the districts. If you are interested, let me know. We can have the PBA put on a training seminar to help with recruiting and information on benefits.

He is right in this paragraph we have over 500 members and they have less than 150 members. There is a reason we have grown by over 500% in the past decade while they have lost the majority of their members. We have a strategy that is effective and successful. I think it is clear that our accomplishments certainly outweigh anything they have done recently. And what is their “message”? Quit the Teamsters and joining the PBA?

We are currently exploring a evening social event with the new academy with speakers talking about the benefits of PBA and what the PBA can do with Collective Bargaining Contracts, officers who have used the services, and officers from other states who have been a part of the Teamsters. The PBA has started hiring recruiters who work on commission to assist with a membership drive.

The PBA has never negotiated a contract. The Teamsters negotiate contracts for 1.4 million members. Who do you think has more experience and success with collective bargaining? Why do they have to hire recruiters who work on commission? We use our own members with their personal experiences of how the union helped them and how we stick together to help one another.

Basically we are begging for participation. The great thing about the PBA is that committees can be formed to look into issues and you, the member, are the ones coming up with the ideas. We don’t want to be like other organizations where you don’t have a voice in who your organization endorses during election time or you don’t get a say in what issues we take on. The PBA will take on any issue the members see as important.

He sounds very desperate. We also listen to our members at every meeting we have. Everyone in our union has a voice and has the right give input on any issue.

If these issues are important to you, then please get involved. Don’t leave it up to a few members to determine what the issues are. This is what sets the PBA above any other organization. You have a voice, so express it in the committees and at meetings.The other great thing about the PBA is the ability to vote out your “elected” leaders. If you are not happy with the direction the organization is taking, then the membership can vote in new leaders. Other organizations can’t say this.

Every position in the Teamsters and the RPPA is an elected position.
I will not make it a habit of correcting every misstatement from the PBA but I just wanted to let our members know what the PBA is doing and how low they have sunk. I will send everyone an update on my meeting with NAPO in the next few days.
Our next meeting is April 7, 2010 1900 hrs at the Teamster Union Hall. And you all have a voice there.

Thanks for your support.

Rick Armstrong

I want to give everyone an overview of our meeting on Wednesday night.

First, we discussed the Van Meter pilot evaluation. There was great concern and confusion on how the evaluation would work and if it would be tied to pay. We all agreed that there are clear inconsistencies and it is a complex evaluation. There was also insufficient training on something that may have significant impact on your job performance. We decided to meet with the Chief and determine the most important issue and that is, will this evaluation be tied to our pay. We are adamantly against sacrificing our raises for this new evaluation. I will update everyone in the next few weeks after we get some clarification from this Chief.

There were also concerns about the uniform and if we may be wearing long sleeves year round and hats on a regular basis. Some members got the impression from the Chief that we are headed in that direction. I have never heard that from him directly but I will ask the question when we meet with him.

We discussed the pay study and determined it would be unrealistic to ask for any raise this year. With the poor economy, vacancies that have dwindled to less than 30 from 140 just two years ago, and a pay study that shows our pay being competitive it would not be reasonable to attempt to gain any significant raises. With that being said we are concerned about our range adjustment and health insurance premiums. We do not want to lose the range adjustment again or have are premiums raised. I have contacted Keith Wilder, Firefight union president, and we plan to meet with Mr. Allen in the next few weeks to discuss our pay and benefits and how they may be affected this year.

Finally, we have grown to well over 500 members. In the last two academies there were 40 officers that graduated and 35 of them have joined the union. With our growth it is important to have proper representation throughout each district. Ideally I would like to see at least 3 reps in each district. With transfers some of our reps have moved to different districts and leaves us with very few in some. For example, Scott Rolfe our longest serving, most loyal district rep has been transferred to drugs and vice which leaves us with no one from the SWD. He will be hard to replace but we need a representative in that district. I am looking for members who would be willing to serve as a district rep. There will not be very much responsibility. I would only ask if they attend two or three meeting a year. I will also ask they read my emails. Information is extremely important. I will send our reps more emails that include the progress we are making at every level. Most of our members will delete long emails like this one and read only the ones that are a couple of paragraphs. I understand that but I also ask that our district reps read all the email and have good knowledge of your union so they can help get our message our and encourage more officers to join. So if you took the time to read this whole email you would probably be good candidate for district rep.

Thanks for your time and support.

Rick Armstrong

The January RPPA meeting has been canceled. Our next meeting will be February 3rd, 2010, 1900 hrs at the Teamster Union Hall on Angus Dr. As usual the Teamster Local meeting will be on Saturday January 16, 2010, 10:00 a.m. at the Teamster Union Hall.

As the decade comes to an end and we reach our ten year anniversary mark I would like to detail some of our major accomplishments.

In 2001 we won the FLSA lawsuit, many officers received between $200-$500 in compensation and how the city calculates overtime was changed.

In 2003 after the proposed budget recommended no range adjustment for city employees we were able to lobby city council to maintain our yearly 1.5% raise.

In 2004 we were able to get dues check off passed through the council although there was significant opposition from the city manager’s officer.

In 2006 the first half of our educational incentive was passed. Officers with bachelor degree would receive $700 a year and officers with an associate would receive $350.

In 2008 the second half of our educational incentive was implemented. A bachelor degree earns your $1400 a year and an associate $700.

In 2009 joined with the Firefighters Union we were able to maintain some of our health insurance benefits. Our deductibles remained $250 a year as opposed to the recommended increase of $450 and our co-insurance remained at $1500 as opposed the the recommended increase to $2500.

We had input on several policies and procedures suggested by the Chief. Many times we were able to negotiate a better policy for the rank and file, including fewer restrictions on the initial off-duty proposal. The amount of off-duty hours worked in a 28 day cycle was to 72 hours from 60 hours, permitting officers to work 12 additional hours per month. The mandated pay rate of $35 an hour for off-duty employers was delayed for three years. Over the past ten years and four Chiefs during that time span we had a significant impact on many policies.

We won dozens of appeals of disciplinary action that would have led to the loss of time, rank, and employment for our members.

By joining the Teamsters we secured a seat on the North Carolina Training and Standards Commission. A position we have maintained over the past three years.

Over the last 10 years we were able to get a majority of City Council members elected that support our agenda.

These accomplishments were only possible due to our growing active membership. Our close to 500 members has helped us gain a significant amount of influence with the city council, the Chief of police, and the general public. I want to thank all of our members who helped achieve our goals by attending meetings, offering input, helping getting council members elected, recruiting officers to join the RPPA, getting our message out, and by just being a loyal member through the good and bad. We will not always agree on our strategy as a union but as long as we remain united with one voice we will continue to be successful. Thank you again and please remain active to help grow your union in strength and numbers.

Have a happy New Year.

Rick Armstrong

The article below is pretty accurate concerning collective bargaining. One point I think he down plays is the power unions will have with this collective bargaining bill. Many union leaders in strong states do not realize how little power we have in North Carolina. Now I realize we will not have near the strength they have any law that gives us the right to mediate with our employer is a major step in the right direction. One point he does make that I believe is true is unions competing against one another and spending more time criticizing one another over fighting for police officers. I can assure you I will stay focused on representing our members and I know the Teamsters will do the same. It is extremely important that the rank and file remain united during this transition.

Also, I believe our new evaluation process is being introduced because of this bill. The police department is preparing for collective bargaining and we need to very cautious of how this will be implemented.

There will be a Teamsters Local 391 Meeting this Saturday at 10:00 a.m. at the Teamster Union Hall. Please make every effort to attend.

Thanks for your support.

Rick Armstrong

Tuesday, November 17, 2009
National Collective Bargaining Law Close To Being Passed
H.R. 413 – Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act of 2009 is close to becoming law. The impact of the law is being greatly overstated by those on both sides of the issue. The truth is that the law is rather benign. About the only requirements are that the employer must talk with the elected employee organizations and that there be some kind of dispute resolution mechanism – not binding arbitration.

What we want to avoid is getting the police and fire in those states all gung ho and acting heavy handedly. If we do, there will be a lot of good people that will experience personal upheaval and anguish as the result of demotions and firings. The League of Cities has their membership convinced that this law is a product of Karl Marx and a direct attack on states rights, capitalism and market economies. You are not going to convince them otherwise, at least not for a long time. Hopefully, the various labor organizations that represent public safety employees will not try to one up each other, by claiming that they can “kick butt” better than the other organizations, but I am afraid that is what will occur. If this event follows the historical route, each major organization will put more effort into castigating the other organizations than helping police officers and firefighter. I hope I am wrong.

Once the law is signed by the President, the Federal Labor Relations Authority will have six months to examine each state’s public safety (police, fire and EMS) collective bargaining law to determine if it meets the minimum requirements of the federal law. If it finds a state’s law to be insufficient it will notify that state that it will have the federal law imposed on it. There is an appeal process for the states. After the appeals process is completed, the law will become effective on the later date of two years from passage or the close of the first legislature session for that state.

The purpose of this drill is to encourage states to either enact or amend their law to comply with the federal law. I would think that the states would get together and come up with a minimum standards law and then have the various legislatures enact it. I do not think that any state really wants the federal government running this operation in their state. I would not want that. However, I doubt if it will go that smoothly. Like most things, there will be lawsuits filed to block or at least delay the law from being implemented. Many of the challenges will be constitutional claims based on some kind of states rights. This will take about three to five years to work its way through the courts.

Currently, there are fifteen states that have no collective bargaining laws for police and several others that have substandard laws – nine Southeastern states, five mountain states, and Indiana. A few of these are down right radical in their hatred of collective bargaining, most notably North Carolina and Virginia. I will be surprised if Jackson, Birmingham, Atlanta, Charlotte and Richmond accept this imposition without a big and bitter fight. Casper and Cheyenne will most likely fight until the last man is shot. Be prepared for what are normally good and decent people in these cities behaving like lunatics. They have and will continue to talk themselves into a frenzy. Eventually, these people will reconcile or pass on, but it may be some time before there is peace.

Yesterday we lost a key ally in our fight for better pay. Rodger Koopman was a strong proponent for police officers. He forced this City manager to conduct a comprehensive pay study comparing RPD to major police departments across the county. I was able to give input as to which cities would be used in the comparison. I believe this was a major step toward making our pay more competitive with other large city police departments. With Koopman no longer on the city council I am not sure what will happen with this pay study. I also want to remind everyone we endorse candidates that support the rights of police officers and the candidates that will fight for better pay and benefits. We only consider those issues and you as a voter can decide which candidate you would like to vote for. Our job is to simply tell you which candidate supports the rank and file police officer. We have made progress with our endorsements and council members supporting our issues. We were able to pass dues check off, get an educational incentive passed, and maintain our health insurance deductibles and co-insurance. I know many members think these our minor issues but these victories have saved officers thousands of dollars each year. Our political endorsements have made these victories possible. We must continue to remain politically active and not let our personal opinions undermine the progress we have made with these endorsements.

We have scheduled a meeting with the Chief for tomorrow. We have a great deal of issues and rumors to bring to his attention. I have heard some concerns about our current schedule. If you are unhappy with the schedule please email me so I can gauge the number of officers that do not like it.

There will be a Teamster meeting on Saturday, October 17, 10:00 a.m. at the Teamster Union Hall. This is Teamster member appreciation day and there will be door prizes(TVs, Bikes, Jackets, Shirts, Hats, etc) and lunch will be served following the meeting. I encourage all of you to attend to get to know your fellow Teamster brothers and sisters.

Our next RPPA meeting is Wednesday, November 4, 7:00 p.m. at the Teamster Union Hall. Our attorney Lee Turner will be present at this meeting to discuss important legal issues.

Thanks for your support.
Rick Armstrong

Our August meeting has been canceled. Our next meeting will be Wednesday, Sept. 2, 1900 hrs at the Teamster Union Hall. Please read the below article about the federal collective bargaining bill that may pass in the near future.

Rick Armstrong

DURHAM — Mayors of the state’s major cities look to be trying to form a coalition with business leaders to oppose an expected federal move to override North Carolina’s restrictions on bargaining with public-employee unions.

The N.C. Metropolitan Mayors Coalition has organized a seminar on labor issues next week in High Point and invited mayors and city managers from its member cities to attend.

The move follows talks between city and Chamber of Commerce leaders from Durham, Chapel Hill, Raleigh, Fayetteville, Charlotte, Winston-Salem, Greensboro and High Point.

The Aug. 5 seminar’s “goal is to learn more about [collective bargaining] and think about what we can all do together on the issue,” Metropolitan Mayors Coalition Director Julie White said.

White said her group has not added a position on collective bargaining to its formal advocacy agenda, although its parent organization, the N.C. League of Municipalities, has.

The league wants to maintain the state’s current ban on public-sector collective bargaining.

City leaders are beginning to talk more about the issue because Congress is considering a bill that would force them to negotiate with unions representing police, firefighters and other public-safety employees.

The bill, introduced by U.S. Rep. Dale Kildee, D-Mich., has 128 co-sponsors in the U.S. House. They include four North Carolina congressmen: Democrats Brad Miller, Heath Schuler and Mel Watt, and Republican Walter Jones.

An earlier version of the bill passed the House in 2007 on a bipartisan, 314-97 vote but stalled in the Senate and died when the 2007-08 session of Congress adjourned last year.

As drafted, Kildee’s bill would bar strikes, but holds that employer-employee cooperation in the public-safety arena is in the national interest. It also says that in many agencies, it’s “the union that provides the institutional stability as elected officials and appointees come and go.”

The bill hasn’t moved out of committee in the House so far this year, but it appears to have “a good chance of passage” in 2010 because Republicans from pro-labor districts have gotten behind it, said Rick Kearney, director of N.C. State University’s School of Public and International Affairs.

Kearney added that if Congress wipes out state bans on collective bargaining for public-safety employees, it’s likely that legislatures will come under pressure to allow negotiations with all government employees.

North Carolina and Virginia are the only states that ban public-sector bargaining by statute, though South Carolina and a few others limit the practice in different ways, Kearney said.

Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy, the metropolitan coalition’s chairman, said he and other mayors “are not in favor” of addressing the issue through federal legislation.

Foy said he personally wants the state General Assembly to repeal North Carolina’s bargaining ban, and thinks it likely to fall eventually. But “the federal government isn’t the right place to be setting those rules,” he said.

He also downplayed the short-term prospects of forming a coalition with business leaders on the issue, saying that upcoming meeting is more about swapping information.

“What we’re doing now is trying to see where we have common interests,” Foy said. “As a general rule, I don’t think the chambers would have had an idea that this legislation was even on the table, much less how it might affect the operations of a municipality. What the ultimate conclusion of that is remains to be seen.”

Foy and Kearney agreed that however the legislative debate unfolds, it’d be smart for city leaders to start educating themselves about how collective bargaining works.

“If it happens soon and local governments aren’t ready, the unions are going to walk all over them,” Kearney said. “It won’t be just the local union and its president [on labor's side of any talks], it’ll be the national firefighters’ association with grizzled veterans coming down from D.C. They will be experts in collective bargaining