Keeping you informed September 2011
Hello again fellow members of the BPDBS. This past month we survived an earthquake, a hurricane, and here it is Labor Day. All is quiet in the office right now, and I thought I would take some time to write my monthly installment of “Keeping you Informed”.
Tomorrow is September 6th and it's back to business as usual. As a matter of fact I have one of our members coming in with questions relative to the medical unit and how they do business. For future reference if you are out injured ask your doctor not to submit to any questions or faxes from the occupational health unit until he or she speaks to you personally. Here is an example of what some of our members have reported.
Now that I've gotten that off my chest, on the grievance front we've received a Step Three denial at City Hall regarding the Family Justice Center and circumventing overtime, along with two step II denials, both involving injured on status. All of these matters will be moving on to the next step in the process. Finally we also had our first grievance involving the Forensic Group. While we did have a step II hearing on August 10, 2011 we are still waiting for a decision but expect a resolution soon.
At the risk of sounding like a broken record I must caution you all again, we’re seeing a spike in our members being called into internal affairs to be interviewed remember, even if you're not a suspect of any wrongdoing and you are told you are “just a witness” please contact the union hall so that we may provide for you legal representation. Reporting to IAD with an attorney is not meant as an adversarial gesture however he or she is there to protect your rights. Up to this point we have had great success with this and it is our hope that it continues.
As you know elections are scheduled for September 13, 2011. The list of candidate’s, times of voting, and how to file an absentee ballot are posted here on the website. I urge all of you to come out and vote. If any candidate wants to access the website to post a campaign letter please contact me at the union hall.
The banquet committee has been meeting and invitations should be going out soon. This year’s banquet will be held at Lombardo’s in Randolph on Saturday October 22nd 2011, please make every effort to attend. This year we will be honoring 15 Detectives and for the first time 2 members of the Forensic Group. The honorees are Lieut. Detective Arthur Stratford, Sgt Dets.James Fong, Gladys Aquino-Gaines, Donald Wightman, John Deveney, Ray Mosher, Detectives James O'Hara, George Cardoza, Robert Brown, Joseph Lally, Miller Thomas, Edward Walsh, Russ Grant, Joanne Foley, Paul Walsh, and Senior Criminalist Eileen Walsh and Christine Stevens. That night we will also present the Detective of the Year award and 25 year plaques. With that in mind if any of you know of any of our members who have been in the BPDBS for 25 consecutive years please contact me here at the hall or via e-mail. If you do not plan on attending and would like to donate your tickets to a specific retiree please mark your reply card with the name of the person retiring and your desire to donate your ticket to them.
This past month Gerry and a group of delegates from the BPDBS attended the national convention of the FOP in Utah. While there, Gerry had the opportunity to speak with national president Chuck Canterbury, among other things they discussed the current political situation surrounding collective-bargaining and its effects on public safety unions. While Gerry was in Utah one of my responsibilities was to attend his bi-weekly meeting with Superintendant Holloway. During our meeting we discussed our desire for more formal training for our members and where we would like to see the Bureau go in regards to professionalism. We also spoke about the code 99 in Brighton on August 10. The Superintendant stated he had sent an e-mail to the members of BIS who responded stating how proud he was of their response and the professional way in which they conducted themselves. The Superintendant also asked that it be noted here the fine work of the homicide unit in regards to the cookout they held for the family members of homicide victims. As a result of his request I spoke to one of our reps at Homicide and discovered that through a combined effort involving the Mayor’s office, the Commissioner’s office, and several other agencies that provide services to homicide victims families a cookout was held at Headquarters. Thanks to the outstanding work of PO. Marivelle Crespo (Family Resource Officer) and Victim Witness Advocate Gina Patterson, invitations were extended to survivors going back 10 years. The event a was a huge success
The Gambling Bill has come out of committee and while there is reason for some possible language changes our Legislative Aide Michael Muse feels there are several sections of the bill that are beneficial to local police departments including Boston. As the bill moves along Michael will update us and report out at our monthly meetings.
Just prior to the end of the month the Office of Labor Relations sent out a letter stating a desire to implement an early intervention system. The system is described as a management tool to assist supervisors with officers exhibiting problematic behavior. The letter went on to state if we had concerns, the Office of Labor Relations was willing to sit down and meet with us to discuss those concerns. Our reply at this time is relatively simple, yes we have concerns with the system and yes, we would like to meet. However, we believe this is a matter for main table bargaining
The issue of the State Police operating in Boston has reared its ugly head again. This time it involves a local college and the State Police Crime Scene Unit. Please be alert for these encroachments and bring them to the attention of the Union as soon as possible. Criminal investigations in the City of Boston are the responsibility of the Boston Police Department. Former state police officers who become directors of security throughout the city, including colleges cannot call in the state police thus circumventing the primary law enforcement agency in the city. This matter and possible actions to be taken were discussed with the Commissioner at a recent meeting attended by Gerry and I this past week.
Finally, I'm not sure if an article can be written in the first week of September without mentioning the events of September 11, 2001. 10 years have passed and for some, life will never be the same. For those of you who responded to the World Trade Center I say Thank You. The men and women you worked with will never forget you and your efforts to assist them.
from 6:15 AM until 7:15 PM close to 100 members of this department including Patrol Officers, Detectives, Superiors, and members of the Command Staff along with Boston EMS and members of the Military from in and around Boston will stand Sentinel watch at the 9/11 Memorial in the Public Gardens. If you can, please stop by the Memorial, if not, I hope you will take a moment to remember not just your brothers and sisters in uniform but all of those who died that day.
Stay safe
“Keeping you Informed”
Tom Famolare.
