Page 33 - FOP August 2021

FOP fared better by securing future pay increases and an av- enue for capping future healthcare costs,” Vallas confirmed.
One of the lingering questions about contract negotiations concerns going to arbitration. As Catanzara explains in his president’s report on page 5, going to arbitration might have resulted in another percent or two in increases. But most likely not.
Arbitrations can be protracted out to more than a year. And Vallas revealed that the history of arbitrations involving the City shows that there has been an opportunity to cry poor. Thusly, the arbitrator has ruled in favor of the City.
So the real question about going to arbitration over phase one is whether it would be worth the risk.
That does not rule out the possibility of arbitrating phase two. In addition to more financial compensation increases Lodge 7 is still working on, discipline protections are sure to come up in phase two. And there’s another big issue still on the table.
“We’re really trying to make a pitch, because we are con- cerned about the retirees,” Vallas detailed. “Officers are afraid to retire because of their healthcare contributions. We have made a number of proposals to address this when we negoti- ate the second phase.”
Does phase one, then, come down to the money? For sure, giving members a total compounded increase of 22 percent with the big checks from retro pay and retro duty availability as the kicker can be interpreted as a sign that the City really does value its police officers.
And from where Lodge 7 sits at the table, the timing could
not have been better to lock down phase one. The City had been stowing away money in anticipation of paying off the ret- ro due. But Vallas reports the stockpile was not nearly enough.
The latest pandemic bailout the City is receiving from Pres- ident Biden – approximately $1.8 billion – will facilitate meet- ing the retro payout plus debt payment on a bond issue that is due. Consequently, the city council will go into budget season not having to find funding for the contract, which could have been at the expense of not hiring for the multitude of open positions in the Department that desperately need to be filled.
“There’s a sense of urgency here because the City is in big financial trouble,” Vallas disclosed. “Had it not been for the COVID money, they would be slashing and burning to pay for the contract. If you wait too long and run into budget season, when everybody is vying for a piece of the pie, we very likely could have...I mean, three months from now we don’t get this deal. If we go to arbitration, by that time, the City might be broke.”
As a bonus, the City is also allocating $950,000 for the FOP to develop a health screening and wellness program that could prevent future increases in healthcare costs for active and retired members. In fact, they could be reduced.
Phase one provides significant benefits for all officers, from those mid-career to those looking to retire to those just com- ing on. That makes it a fair contract, according to Vallas, whose perspective both the Lodge and the City trust.
“The best contracts are the contracts where everybody wins,” he asserted. “You know what I mean?”
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