Page 33 - July 2017 Newsletter

seen one of them here. So it’s nice to see them in here without having to make a phone call, because I know how busy you guys are down at the Lodge.”
Roll with it
Between roll calls, Graham pops a Diet Mist Twist and a Life Saver, apparently the breakfast of union reps on the go. A little energy boost is needed, because he appeared on Chicago Tonight the night before, then laid awake until about 2 a.m., probably thinking about the contract.
But he wouldn’t miss this roll call for any reason. It’s the best part of the job, talking to the members, the men and women he has rolled with for 28 years on the job. The Lodge leaders don’t want to sound their own horns, and don’t portend to be roll models, but they have been going calls to the walls since taking over in April. Murray relates to 9th District Second Watch how on a recent Saturday night they were in the office working until midnight.
And he adds that the late night means little without this early morning wake-up call.
“Unfortunately, when you work upstairs, you lose a lit- tle bit about what’s happening on the streets,” Murray ex- plains. “That’s why this is so important. Because you have to take time to talk to the officers on the street. You got to give them information and you also have to listen and an- swer their questions. Whatever they have concerns about, that’s what you need to talk about.”
As Graham states in his opening remarks, the priority objective of getting on a roll call is to answer questions about where Lodge is and where the organization is go- ing. They are also up early for the opportunity to reassure members they know their perspective and to keep com- munication going. So another important objective, as Graham says, “is a chance for them to get the union to re- solve the issues that are important.”
This is not lost on the members, those like Officer John Matich who has worked in 09 for 16 years and was excited to see an FOP president come to roll call for only the sec- ond time in his time on the job.
“It’s good to actually have somebody at the top coming down to talk to everybody, explain what the heck’s going on and give an update,” Matich states. “Just something so nobody is saying, ‘what are we doing?’ It’s firsthand infor- mation, which is good to get.”
Graham also reminds them what motivates him to be here.
“We’re getting the message out that you are out there doing your jobs,” he declares.
Leading Roll
During the 15 minutes available to address the mem- bers, the questions will come fast and furious. Some will stay a few minutes longer to get some individual time with Graham or Murray and convey their personal grievances.
Consequently, there are just a few moments to get through the informational portion of the program. Gra- ham has no problem rattling off the data.
Evoking the “our job is to worry about us out there doing our job every day” perspective on the Lodge responsibili- ties, Graham addresses the top-of-the-mind concerns:
Chicago Lodge 7 First Vice President Pat Murray addresses the 9th District Second Watch roll call.
Several o cers stayed for a few minutes after the roll call to ask additional questions to Lodge 7 President Kevin Graham.
• ThelettertotheCitytogetbackpayhasbeensentand filed.
• Thepensionsystemisnotgoingtobebroke.
• Plansareintheworkstogetbackdutyavailability.
• The Lodge has met with the Superintendent about of-
ficers being overworked and about how to best deploy
the new cars coming online by the end of the summer. “The Superintendent’s been very receptive. We had con- versations about things that have to be done. We’ve had a very good dialogue,” Graham reports. “We’re not going to let the City continue to balance the budget on our backs.” The impact of imparting such words cannot be min- imized, especially looking through the eyes of officers sharing the same point of view as Victoria Mendoza, who is in her third year on the job in 09 and radiates an infec- tious smile when asked about how it’s going. Just the pres- ence of Lodge at the early-morning roll call is rocking her
world.
“He’s a cop, so I just sat down and told him, ‘This is what
my beef is.’ And he listens,” Mendoza shares about her conversation with the Lodge president. “I’m looking to see that they support us, that he understands and he’s going to work to try to help us.”
Some of the beefs require a little more seasoning.
CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ JULY 2017 33