Page 21 - November 2020

The City of Chicago has taken the position that in termina- tion cases the officer must go to the Police Board, or it is at least a mandatory point of discussion during contract negoti- ations. The ruling changes this.
The FOP filed a Petition for Declaratory Ruling under the Rules and Regulations of the Illinois Labor Relations Board, seeking a determination that the Police Board is not a manda- tory subject of negotiation but rather only permissive. Push- ing away all of the legal ease, the FOP stated, “if we don’t want to go to the Police Board, then we don’t have to.” The General Counsel’s opinion is long, and tests one’s knowledge of the English language, but ultimately concludes that the FOP is correct. The Police Board only exists because the FOP agreed to it and thus if we don’t agree to it, we don’t have to be sub- ject to it. The FOP is simply going to revert to state law, which requires arbitration. The opinion is a landmark decision. It puts an end to the unfair and biased Police Board. The de- cision rewrites the rules on termination cases. This gives an officer a fair and legitimate chance to present his or her side of the argument to a fair and just finder of fact instead of a political body who answers to the mayor.
While this is a great opportunity for the FOP, it is also fraught with danger. The legislature in Springfield could abolish the law and require police boards to hear termination cases. While one would imagine that other police units throughout the state would oppose this, Springfield could apply it only to the City of Chicago. Hence, this victory could be snatched from us before we could benefit. The FOP has to be vigilant in ensuring this does not happen, and hopefully the Chicago Police Board will be tossed into the ash heap of history where it belongs.
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