City: 12 HR Police Shift Not Council-Approved. Pay Not Time for OT Not Amended

WPCNR WHITE PLAINS LAW JOURNAL. By John F. Bailey. February 2, 2010: The Common Council effort to overturn the new 12-hour police work shifts for patrols voted last night in Executive Session is based on two matters:


 


1.)The new Adam Bradley Administration contention that Mayor Joseph Delfino never acquired Common Council approval in 2008 for the new 12-hour police schedule; and


 


2.) the Mayor’s allowing overtime to be paid police in actual monetary pay, instead of being paid with compensatory time-off. The city contends the overtime pay mode (actual monetary pay instead of compensatory time), needed an amendment to the existing police contract, which required council approval, the Bradley administration Chief of Staff, John Callahan said today.


 


Overtime Savings Unconfirmed.


 


In a brief interview late Tuesday afternoon, WPCNR asked Mr. John Callahan, City Chief of Staff, if, in attempting to overturn the 12-hour Work Schedule for police patrols, the city would be foregoing savings in overtime which were promoted as the reason for testing  the 12-hour shifts. Callahan said  “we cannot tell at this time, until the new Commissioner of Public Safety (David Chong) completes an analysis.” Callahan added that if 12-hour shifts created such a savings in overtime costs, he felt other departments in the area would be using the 12-hour shift model.


 



John Callahan, City Hall Chief of Staff. January 3.


 


Asked why the city felt the 12-hour shift for police was the subject of a Declaratory Judgment action (to be filed) to overturn it, Callahan said the police 12-hour shift was not formally approved by the Common Council Callahan added that another part of the Declaratory Judgment action concerned itself with Mayor Joseph Delfino’s authorization of  police overtime paid in cash, instead of compensatory time, which Callahan said required an amendment to the police contract.  Callahan said the cash payment of overtime was never approved by the Common Council.


 


Callahan reconstructed the events of late 2008 as follows. He said the Council originally rejected the pay settlements reached by the fire fighters union, and the Mayor went back to the Common Council urging them to approve the 24-hour shifts for firefighters as a money-saving, overtime saving measure. The council agreed to approve the firefighter hours, but Callahan said the Mayor never returned to the council to approve the police 12-hour shifts.


 


The suit is scheduled to be filed within the next two weeks.


 

Posted in Uncategorized

City Challenges Police 12- Hour Work Schedule — Ask Declared Null & Void

WPCNR POLICE GAZETTE. By John F. Bailey. February 2, 2010 UPDATED 2:50 P.M. E.ST.: At the close of the Monday evening Common Council meeting, the Common Council went into Executive Session. After 45 minutes, the Council reconvened and Mayor Bradley announced the Council had voted in Executive Session to ask for a Declaratory Judgment, without explanation.


WPCNR has learned the city is planning a court action asking for a Declaratory Judgment declaring the 2008 Memorandum of Agreement with the police union agreeing to the 12-hour Work Schedule. 


John Callahan, City Chief of Staff told WPCNR Tuesday afternoon “it is the opinion of this administration the Memorandum of Agreement entered into in December of 2008 on Police portion of the agreement involving overtime on 4 hours of the 12-hour shift was not approved by the Common Council.” Callahan explained that the 24-hour work shift now being worked by White Plains firefighters was approved legally by the Common Council.


Callahan told WPCNR he expected a law suit asking for a declaratory judgment would be filed in a week to two weeks.


The 12-24 hour work schedules for police and fire departments, respectively,  was put into effect on a trial basis in January 2009. It became “permanent” when the former Commissioner of Public Safety, Dr. Frank Straub did not extend the trial period of the work schedules past the 9-months it had been in effect, allowing it to perpetuate.


 The Common Council in a heated public exchange in November asked Straub to extend the trial, because they wanted to see a more extended financial impact.


 Straub declined to extend the trial period by the deadline. Subsequently the council attempted to terminate Dr. Straub’s employment, but Straub abruptly left his position before they could dismiss him.


The Head of the Police Benevolent Association, Jim Carrier was surprised when WPCNR called him asking for comment on the Council decision.


It should be pointed out that the planned action by the city does not dispute the binding arbitration recently handed down raising police and fire salaries 3.5 % and 4% for 2008-2009 and 2009-10.

Posted in Uncategorized

Someone Who Ignored Orders to Save Lives







































You’re a 19 year old kid. 







You’re critically wounded and dying in the jungle in the Ia Drang Valley , on 11-14-1965, LZ X-ray , Vietnam . Your infantry unit is outnumbered 8 – 1 and the enemy fire is so intense, from 100 or 200 yards away, that your own Infantry Commander has ordered the MediVac helicopters

to stop coming in.








You’re lying there, listening to the enemy machine guns and you know you’re not getting out. 







Your family is 1/2 way around the world, 12,000 miles away and you’ll never see them again. 







As the world starts to fade in and out, you know this is the day.






Then – over the machine gun noise – you faintly hear that sound of a helicopter..!!







You look up to see an un-armed Huey!! But…. it doesn’t seem real because no Medi-Vac markings are on it. 







Ed Freeman is coming for you..!! 







He’s not Medi-Vac so it’s not his job, but he’s flying his Huey down into the machine gun fireanyway. Even after the Medi-Vacs were ordered not to come. 







He’s coming anyway. 







And he drops it in and sits there in the machine gun fire, as they load 2 or 3 of you on board.. 







Then he flies you up and out through the gunfire to the Doctors and Nurses.. 







And, he kept coming back..!! 13 more times..!! 







He took about 30 of you and your buddies out who would never have gotten out.







Medal of Honor Recipient, Ed Freeman, died last Wednesday at the age of 80, in Boise , ID 
May God Rest His Soul. 

I bet you didn’t hear about this hero’s passing, but we’ve sure seen a whole bunch about Michael Jackson!!!






Medal of Honor Winner
Ed Freeman! 

Shame on the American Media..!! 

Posted in Uncategorized

How Would You Fix It?

WPCNR MR.& MRS. & MS. WHITE PLAINS POLL. February 1,2011: The Ax has begun to fall on the lower salaried workers in the city as White Plains new administration strives to undo the financial follies of the Delfino Administration, the extent of which may never be known due the tidiness of the Delfino Gang in shredding untold millions of documents last spring, so much was shreded they needed a truck to do it. However, the damage has been done and now must be undone and the city, much like the south during reconstruction after the Civil War has to be reinvigorated with injections of cash.


WPCNR has come up with a list of possibilities other than layoffs which begin tonight with a mere ten persons being laid off at the approval of the Common Council. Which would you consider if you were Mayor Adam Bradley and his management team?

Posted in Uncategorized