For those of you who couldn’t attend The IUPA Union Meetings, we feel it’s important to keep you informed and up to date on the questions that were asked. The following is a list of those questions with the answers following immediately.
-Once the union is voted in, do we start from scratch and bargain for everything or do we keep our salary, benefits, etc. and bargain from there?
Once The IUPA is voted in as your Collective Bargaining Agent, all of your wages, hours and working conditions must remain status quo. From this point forward all of your wages hours and working conditions must be bargained for.
-How soon will we certify so we can be protected under PERC?
The IUPA will be certified as your Collective Bargaining Agent 16 days from the Ballot Tally. Any retaliation against employees for their union activity now would be a violation of law that could be reviewed by The Public Employees Relations Commission (PERC) and could be a violation of the U.S. Constitution.
-What is the estimated time before a vote can take place?
The Election Date will be determined by PERC. The speed in which your Election Date is set depends on the election case load PERC is dealing with at the time. Generally speaking, your election will take place 3 to 4 months after your petition for elections is filed.
-Will The IUPA counter or respond to any emails the Sheriff sends out that may go against the union activity?
Yes, our main concern is that you hear the truth. It has come to our attention that when the Deputies attempted to form their union several months ago, a number of misleading e-mails from LCSO were distributed containing incomplete accounts of Unions and their elections. Be aware that you will be most likely facing the same onslaught of propaganda during your campaign.
-Will an attorney be present for all internal affairs, interrogations, etc.?
Yes.
-How is the Board for our union made up once we vote the union in?
Once you have voted The IUPA in as your bargaining representative we will be distributing nomination forms for your Executive Board. Your Board will consist of a President, Vice President, Secretary/Treasurer, and two Board Seats. Once the nominations have been compiled we will then hold an onsite election for your executive board.
-If I sign a card, am I protected and considered to be involved in union activity under Statute 447 and will The IUPA back me if the agency attempts to discriminate against me because of the union?
Once you have submitted an Interest Card you now have the protection of Statute 447 and the backing of IUPA to make sure your rights are protected.
-Recently a sergeant heavily involved in union activity was transferred. Is The IUPA supporting him and backing him? What are you doing about it?
Stay tuned. The IUPA is going to take aggressive action to fight this transfer. This action will become public in the next couple of days.
-If I am acting in the capacity as a law enforcement officer, will The IUPA's legal defense cover me if I am a paying union member in the civil and or criminal process? Is there a monetary cap on the legal defense?
Yes. If any civil or criminal proceedings arise out of the nature, course and scope of your duties The IUPA will represent you from start to finish with NO Caps, NO Co Pays and NO Deductibles.
-If I sign a card, can the Administration ever find out about it?
No. At no time will the LCSO have the right or the opportunity to see or know who has or has not signed a card.
-Once we certify and move forward towards the election, will our votes be secret? Will the Administration including the Sheriff ever know how we voted as an individual?
Everyone’s ballot will be strictly confidential. At no time will the LCSO, The IUPA or PERC know how you voted. PERC goes to great lengths to make sure your ballots remain confidential.
-If the Sheriff does not agree to our contract and refuses to sign it, are we stuck? Or, do we get independent arbitrators involved where it is equal playing field for us and the sheriff?
If the Sheriff agrees to a contract he must sign it, or it is an unfair labor practice that can be remedied by PERC. If the Sheriff refuses to agree to a contract, then there would be an impasse over the issues that were in dispute. An impasse is resolved by first going to an impartial magistrate for a fact finding. If this does not result in a resolution, the dispute is resolved by the “legislative body”, which in this case would likely be the Lee County Commission. The “legislative body” must resolve the disputes, and as a result there will be a complete collective bargaining agreement. If the Sheriff does not agree to this resolution, the collective bargaining agreement will be imposed on the Sheriff under Florida state law.
-In discipline cases, will The IUPA represent us throughout the entire process? If the punishment is determined to be unfair and considered to be above and beyond accepted practice, what recourse do we have to fight it? The civil service board is not fair for the deputies and considered a "kangaroo court."
In The IUPA’s collective bargaining agreements, the last step in the disciplinary process is generally binding arbitration. In arbitration, a neutral professional labor arbitrator decides the case. The arbitrator is selected by both sides, and is paid equally be both sides. The IUPA will represent its members in disciplinary appeals, and members will be represented by an attorney at the arbitration hearing.
-Is the Sheriff bound/required to bargain with us as a union when it passes? What happens if he does not agree with the contract we design?
The Sheriff is required by Florida state law to bargain in good faith with The IUPA. The Sheriff is not required to accept the contract we design, and The IUPA is not required to accept a contract that the Sheriff designs. We each make proposals for the contract. Usually there will be agreement on most of the proposals. If there are disputes, then they go through the process described above, and in the end there will be an agreement.
-What are the ramifications and recourse if the sheriff does not follow the contract once it is in place?
The contract must have a binding arbitration clause that is used to resolve any disputes over the contract. Therefore, The IUPA could file a grievance and then take the grievance to arbitration. An arbitrator will decide the dispute, and order the appropriate remedy. If the Sheriff refuses to comply with the arbitrator’s decision, The IUPA can file a petition in court to enforce the decision, which courts almost always grant. Therefore, even the most anti-union employers rarely disobey arbitration decisions.
-Once the union is in place, what is The IUPA's and union's position with disciplinary issues regarding grievances? Is it best to avoid the civil service board if you are a paying union member?
The IUPA generally recommends that employees go to arbitration and not the civil service board. Arbitrators are fair, and not influenced by local politics or by the Sheriff’s power.
-I already pay dues to another union. Why should I pay 12 dollars more to join IUPA?
You, like many of our collective bargaining unit, pay dues for legal representation. But the legal representation that you get from a union that does not represent you for the purpose of collective bargaining can only represent you in internal investigations. They cannot represent you during a grievance proceeding or other legal action that is brought against you while you are represented by another collective bargaining unit. In these cases you would have to hire your own attorney for representation. Also, your current limited plan has a financial cap. As a member of IUPA you have no cap. Your legal fees are covered whether they are one dollar or one million dollars in one case or in one hundred cases.
The time that it takes to research the points of contract negotiation costs money. Research is a necessary function of the contract negotiation process. It may involve accountants, lawyers and academics. By remaining with a union for basic legal representation as opposed to supporting the collective bargaining unit that is fighting for you at every level can diminish the overall effectiveness of the process. The return on your investment for full collective bargaining and legal representation with IUPA is clearly greater than basic legal representation with a union that is not fully representing your agency.