(Update by David:) Here’s another photo, from today’s Globe. Makes it pretty obvious (if it wasn’t already) that this isn’t about public safety. It’s about protecting a valuable perk.
Please share widely!
Police embarrass themselves, hurt labor movement, anger taxpayers
AG, take note.
Great post. Stunts like this could hurt the public image of public employee unions as a whole. The police unions need to give it up. Hopefully the supporters of question 1 will not use it as a reason why people should vote in favor of question 1. Whenever the local newspaper posts the salaries of the town employees, the police appear at the top of the list with a number making well over $100,000 or double what the average salary is in the community. It makes people very mad and this protest is only going to add fuel to the fire.
I would recommend calling in the national guard to set up a buffer, if it wasn’t for the fact that they are probably still otherwise occupied and/or mostly police themselves! Peaceful picketing by off-duty cops is fine- disruption and/or intimidation is not okay. Interference with maintenance work or similar abuses of power by uniformed officers (if this has happened or does happen) is a complete disgrace, and should result in immediate suspension.
by a group of scary, intimidating guys at their work site, workers have every right to call the cops to protect them, right? Just dial 911.
So the only question is who do you call in this case? The good cops, I guess.
What’s troubling to me on the issue of civilian flaggers is the appearance that it is a “no brainer”. While the reality is few savings and ignorance of outcomes and impacts upon these working people and the budgets of the communities that pay them.
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p>What is the plan by the Administration and Legislature to adjust base wages for local Police Officers? Was this considered? Negotiated? Um, nope. Will this become another unfunded mandate for local government to bargain the delta in current salary (detail + base) – details = base. What is the average loss in detail per officer in the state? Looking locally I would suggest ~20K per officer/year that enables these working class people to have a living wage? Does each community have ~20K per officer per year to adjust the usurping of collective bargaining done by the Administration? If this were Romney, people would be screaming in the street….(oh ya, they were!). Civilian flaggers at prevailing wage, plus liability and catastrophic accident insurance is pretty darn near close to the current detail rates.
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p>It continues to bug me that the most lucrative statie jobs are protected? There’s the gravy train that needs a tight rein.
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p>BTW, can you imagine if the teaching profession had a similar perk such as teaching summer school or tutoring taken away from them and legislated to Aides?
How do the DPW guys get by, I wonder?
Local police contracts are negotiated by local governments. I’m told some towns do take detail pay into account when negotiating contracts. Cops sometimes accept lower base pay on the assumption they’ll make it up on detail work. I’m sure this will come up as contracts are neogtiated, but it’s not the governor’s job to worry about that.
As far as cost-savings go, personally that’s never been a big issue to me. What worries me is how cops are using their time. When you consider they often rank among the highest-paid employees in a community when detail pay is included, you start to wonder when they actually sleep. Personally, the idea of a tired cop worries me.
It’s not the Democratic Governor’s job to consider issues related to collective bargaining and unfunded mandates upon municipalities created by his actions? There is no link to improved local aid with this proposal so where does the money come from….increased property taxes? Or just out of the hide of police officers?
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p>I support your issues with safety and abuse of details. Legislation that monitored and capped details would have been useful and not punitive as the current actions are and will be for both officers and municipalities…just what our cities and towns need.:)
If so much of their time is spent being flag men then clearly there is some percentage of officers that can be let go with zero effect on the public safety (assuming these thugs with badges don’t turn to a life of crime once they are let go).
Perhaps you’ve heard of Prop. 2/12?
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p>Detail pay is, presumably, “extra.” Cops will still get paid what the contract calls for. If towns choose to make up the lost pay when the next contract negotiation comes around, that’s up to the town.
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p>Unfunded mandates are an issue, but I don’t see how this is an unfunded mandate.
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p>I think this is a very bad analogy. A better analogy would be that teachers be paid near their salary to stand on the sidelines of weekend school sports events, “just in case” a teaching moment presents itself.
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p>My biggest gripe with the paid details is that there really is no justification for them. The best I have heard is that the police on these jobs are handy because there might be an incident either involving a driver or someone else in the vicinity where policing is needed. Although there have been occasions where an officer on a paid detail has contributed to the area’s public safety, perhaps by noticing someone on a warrant, I suspect this is rare.
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p>I think that we should instead pay the police to patrol near the job sites, and to respond when a problem occurs at the site. We are doing the opposite — paying them to stand at the job site, waiting for a problem elsewhere to occur.
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p>My personal experience is that the officers on duty contribute little to the safety of the passers-by. Most of the time I have witnessed either indifference to the surroundings, chatting with the workers, or talking on cell phones. We are paying police to stand around.
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p>I recognize that most police depend on this extra salary. I think that a salary upgrade would be needed if these details are eliminated. I also think it’s a little obscene that the union general laborers who would take this function on are paid substantially more than teachers. I’m not begrudging anyone to be in a union, nor am I claiming that people shouldn’t make reasonable wages, but that disparity seems pretty wide to me.
The issue of salary upgrade has still not been addressed…where will the funds be generated? I agree with the need to reform details especially monitoring activity and overuse/abuse of the details. Still, I take issue with the process and outcome.
It’s pretty lousy etiquette to slam a post with a (3) and offer no counter point or rationale for stamping a “worthless” on on it. Do you have a funding source for the lost wages to police officers?
How can anyone be sure that there will be precisely X need for traffic diversion/ NStar/Verizon maintenance every year?
Which is why there should have been more in-depth discussion on the ramifications of the elimination of details. One of the reasons for full time legislators is to analyze the unintended outcomes of legislation. Another reason for an Executive branch is to do likewise.
Clearly, my position is not politicallly popular here or elsewhere. However, I do believe from the local perspective, that I have raised some valid points, too.
The article mentions a bumper sticker slapped down on a manhole cover on the worksite protesting the action. People have been arrested at political protests (RNC, WTO) for such actions.
Call the cops! Oh, wait …
National Guard?
Arm the Commonwealth Corps!
Hopefully it doesn’t come to that.
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p>Link.
Since the unions took over police power in the cities the police use even less discretion in the abuse of power. The unions are the de facto management of the police. Hiding behind their unions and MGL, Chapter 272: Section 99 and omerta police have little to fear of justice. We’ve all seen the headlines of murder, drugs, theft, rape, prostitution and extortion involving police. Few believe that is not just the tip of the iceberg.
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p>”Internal Affairs”?, c’mon, get real. Any hope of justice is through a Federal investigation and court proceeding. The vast bulk of misconduct goes unreported and unnoticed.
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p>There is no real accountability. The biggest concern of the bloated Boston Police management is to identify and silence a critical police blog. Public affairs has the highest priority.
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p>Anyone that watched the news regarding the police union and officials explaining the new flagger system were treated to the show of our public safety personnel as knuckle dragging thugs. My only surprise is that the cops haven’t murdered anyone about this – yet.
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p>The real difference in the police and other street gangs is that the illegal gangs have more discipline.
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But of all our public employee unions, it always seems the ones that behave the worst are the public safety unions.
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p>I’ve been at Town Meetings where the idea of civilian flagmen were discussed. Guess who’s lined-up in the back with their arms crossed looking like they’re taking names.
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p>No, not the teachers union.
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p>The town of Halifax actually has a bylaw allowing for civilian flaggers, but its never used because the cops harrass the flaggers.
And I still am, even more so now. I have also been against unions in general for the low handed tactics they use including intimidation, fear, silencing of any opposition and yes violence. Many on this site have argued with me how “wonderful” and neccessary unions are. Are you all proud of this display?
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p>This move by the UNION should be universally condemned by every citizen in the state. Did the BPD hear about the financial disaster on Wall St? Did they hear the Governor announcing a $233 Million shortfall? Do they really think the public, concerned about their next paycheck will give an ounce of shit for them earning their $50+/hour detail pay?
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p>The BPD union is usually rated higher than the Fire Department, but if this keeps up they may both be tied for BOTTOM!
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p>The AG should put an immediate restraining order on the BPD union and lock up anyone who breaks it.