Town Hall Meeting

Last night I had a Town Hall meeting at Lamar High School. Again it was well attended, with well over 150-200 people there. As stated I am blessed with citizens that want to be informed. At one point in the evening the President of the Fire Fighters Union and I got into a dialogue about Civil Service. He stated a few things that i totally disagree with. 1. That if Civil Service was implemented that Council would be taking away their benefits. My thoughts were that your current benefit package rests with the City form of governance and not with Civil Service. If you want your current benefits package do not request Civil Service. If you want Civil Service then you get what the state provides not a hybrid of the two systems.  There will not be a cherry picking event where you get the good parts of the city system and add them to the Civil Service form of government.  This I'm afraid is what the Union is selling to its members, and it simply won't happen.  2. His next statement is that "Meet and Confer" will be an avenue to change Civil Service in a way that is beneficial to both parties. Again Meet and Confer rests with the City not the State. Meet and Confer will be a fond memory under Civil Service. And Lastly he stated that firings occur all the time under Civil Service. I strongly suggest that Mr. Crow read this article in the Wall Street Journal to figure out why these police officers in other cities cannot be fired. 

http://www.wsj.com/articles/why-some-problem-cops-dont-lose-their-badges-1483115066

The main body of the Town Hall Meeting was about all of the investment that is coming to Arlington.  Essentially, the total worth of the city is $12 billion.  The total investment to this city in the next few years is $4 billion.  This means that businesses want to come to Arlington and invest there money in our city.  This rate of investment is staggering.  At one point in the evening a lady stated that 74% of the children in our city are considered impoverished and that Arlington is headed downhill.  This is her opinion and it couldn't be further from the trend I see in Arlington.  This city is going vertical in development, and that means jobs.  The vehicle to get people out of poverty is jobs and the growth in our city will require thousands and thousands of jobs, which pay money and remove Arlington residents from poverty.  You are in the Best Big City in the South to live in (Money Magazine).  So act like it and be proud of the changes that have been made to get us here, and the changes to come, that are going to make our city even better.

A Letter from a Regular Fireman

This is a letter that came to me a while back.  I love our Firemen but not their Union.  This letter shows the frustration of the rank and file in the Arlington Fire Department, and how they feel about their representation.

Mr. Parker,

 

My name is XXXXXXXXX.  I have been a Fireman here in Arlington for 36+ yrs.  I am presently a XXXXXX at Fire Station XX.  I usually don’t get involved in city politics, and keep the rumor mill out of my Station.  Someone sent me a link to your blog the other day and I decided to check it out.  I must commend on your statements regarding the APFA as well has the APD issue.  It’s refreshing to hear somebody finally tell it like it is.

 

I have been a member of the APFA since I was hired in 1979.  I rarely went to meetings, but paid my dues just in case I needed some help one day.  I never saw the APFA do anything really positive, and they mostly just kept the pot stirred.  But since David Crow took over, the APFA has turned into a Mafia style operation that is going to destroy the Fire Dept.  I actually attended a meeting several months ago.  I was so disgusted with the E Board’s sense of entitlement and the way they treated me that I resigned on the spot.  They are out of control and on a personal vendetta against Chief Crowson, no matter what the cost.  It’s amazing to me the City Hall still has discussions with the APFA.  So I wanted to say thank you for telling it like it is.  I would like to invite you out to the Station for lunch or dinner if you’re interested.  My crew has the same attitude towards the APFA as I do and we would enjoy the opportunity to chat.  Please feel free to contact me via email or phone.

 

 

Thanks for getting the truth out to the public and employees. 

January 24th Council Meeting

Arlington Council Put Civil Service on Ballot

 

Last night I did something at Council that I have never done before.  I voted against a valid petition to put Civil Service on the ballot in Arlington by the Fire Fighter’s Union.  I did this because I knew from the comments of my colleagues that it would pass and go on the ballot, but I could not support it.

We have given the Firemen one of the best jobs in the Metroplex.  They work in the Best Big City in the South (Money Magazine), and receive one of the best wages in North Texas, for Fire Fighters.  For all these things that have been given to them, the Union shows their gratitude by slapping Council and City Management in the Face.  They want PERMANEANT JOBS!.  The reality of this statement is that, under Civil Service a Fire Fighter could murder someone and we could only put him on Indefinite suspension .  That’s right!  Although he might be sitting on death row, the City of Arlington would still have him on our books because we can’t get rid of him.  I hope the voters of Arlington have this knowledge when they step into the voting booth in May.

Town Hall Meeting

I am holding a Town Hall Meeting at Lamar High School this Thursday the 26th of January at 6:30.
The subject will be crime in North Arlington by Chief Jeff Petty.
The next subject will be the expansion of the Kroger Store by Ron Smith, Planning and Zoning Commissioner.
I will go over the apartments on Washington, and then I will cover the progress of all of the projects in North Arlington and the other special projects in our city.
I will also have a brief on the Senior Center and I will touch on Civil Service for our Fire Department.
I hope to see you all there.  This has been the first Town Hall in 9 months.


Charlie

Civil Service and the AFF (Discipline)

The Union has had a problem with the way the Fire Chief, Don Crowson is doing his job and has tried to get him fired for the last three years.  Now they have escalated their unhappiness to Deputy City Manager Bowman and the City Manager.  Their unhappiness was with their W-2 pay.  The Council addressed that.  Now they are unhappy with the disciplinary system and the hiring and promotion practices, and they are willing to reduce their W-2’s in order to change this process.

The Fire Union is seeking to break away from the city’s protection umbrella and seek protection under the state program of Civil Service.  In the afternoon meeting of the January 3^rd Council Session we had a very good brief by Ms. Lisa Zepeda one of our staff lawyers.   The subject matter addressed the differences between current Arlington disciplinary action versus Civil Service procedure.  The Civil Service process is contained within Part 143 of the Texas Local Government Code.  Ms. Zepeda stated that the purpose of this section is for the employee to, “HAVE A JOB FOR LIFE.”  Personally I don’t agree with this concept and I believe that it is detrimental to the overall quality of the Arlington Fire Department.  Our Firefighters do a great job and service our community remarkably.  I don’t believe that it would be productive nor foster a healthy environment, to allow a bad apple to rot in our department when he/she should have been dismissed.

Ms. Zepeda went back 13 years and compiled the records of discipline between the previous Chief and the current Chief.  It was found that the current Chief’s record of discipline is 23% less than his predecessor.  It was also brought out that the Chief does not administer the discipline.  But a panel of Assistant Chiefs decides the level of punishment.  The Chief can only either agree or reduce the punishment.  Here again this shows the dysfunction of the Fire Union.   Council is tired of these misrepresentations of facts.

First it was the squad concept that the Union couldn’t handle.  But this concept has been adopted by Fire Departments throughout the United States and is considered the most efficient way to administer protection to our citizens.  Next it was “The Book” accusing the Chief of fiscal misconduct.  Council requested an audit that exonerated the Chief and pointed out that the utilization of overtime by the fire department was excessive.  The Chief reduced overtime from 35,000 hrs. to 6,000 hrs.. Then the Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) complaint was made to Council.  Again another audit was preformed and recommendations were made and accomplished by the Chief.  Then because of a complaint of low morale, an independent survey was accomplished.  The Chief again made corrections and the Union ignored the results.  The Council brought up the Fire Fighter’s W-2 to be superior to other departments in the Metroplex.  I might add that a entry level (F1) Fire Fighter, 5 years out of high school, will make $77,000 as a base pay.  Now the Union wants to break away from the City and seek protection under the State’s Civil Service Laws.

The issue of Civil Service will be on the ballot in May of this year.  Personally I am tired of this Union’s whining like mistreated children.  They have a great job in the Best Big City in the South, with a great wage.  Grow Up.   I ask for a NO Vote On Civil Service!!!    Stop the JOBS FOR LIFE movement.   http://www.wsj.com/articles/why-some-problem-cops-dont-lose-their-badges-1483115066

Civil Service and the AFF II

Yesterday was a long and interesting day.  I started my day with a Municipal Policy Committee about the parking of vehicles in backyards.  I finally got out of Council about 9:15 that evening.  We talked about a lot of issues from funding the new Baseball Stadium, to funding the MAX bus system for FY 2017.  But I want to stay on the theme of Civil Service for the time being.  The AFF is the Firefighter Union and they want to be out from under the protective umbrella of the city and under the protection of the state of Texas.  The reason for this is because they don’t like Chief Crowson.  They don’t like the removal of overtime down from 35,000 hours to 6,000 hours.  They don’t like his policies, nor his discipline and here is a sample of their rhetoric:

“For too long, we have endured policy changes that adversely affect many of our members.  Members are disciplined at an alarming rate with punishments far exceeding the circumstances.  We witnessed restructuring of the Battalion Chiefs’ positions, and now a proposed reclassification of those same positions which will diminish their rights to representation and due process. .. .  We have appealed to our elected officials for change and they have only sympathized with us, claiming many of our issues should be handled by city management, not them.”

Well very little of this is true.  The policy changes, such as the squad concept are used by many FD’s throughout the United States.  The Paramedic Program was just given the highest award in the nation.  These policies work and save lives.  It is time the AFF gets with the modern age of firefighting.  If you don’t like the job then go somewhere that is not progressive and forward thinking.

In yesterday’s afternoon meeting, all the instances of discipline were broken down.  It was obvious to see that Chief Paulsgrove administered more discipline to the troops than Chief Crowson.  Concerning the Battalion Chief’s position, it was clear that a commensurate position at the Arlington Police Department is the Deputy Chief.  The Fire Department is simply aligning itself and making a new position called a Deputy Chief.  This position pays $5,000 more than a Battalion Chief, and you move from an hourly employee to a salaried position in management.  Chief Crowson is currently finding plenty of Captain applicants that are applying for this position.

Lastly let me address the AFF’s approach to Council.  This is inappropriate!  You have a chain of command, use it.  You have Meet and Confer, make it work.  Council heard your accusations in “The Book” and the Auditor found them to be false.  She also found your utilization of overtime to be abhorrent.  We have looked at the facts of the above accusations and found them to be false and/or childish.  We have conducted a survey by an independent source, and you have failed to respond.  And you say we have done nothing.  Now Civil Service!

What I think is hilarious about Civil Service is that the Union that is perpetrating all these problems, believes that if Civil Service prevails, firefighters will retain their current benefits.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  You want Civil Service?  You will get Civil Service and nothing more.  Good Luck.

Civil Service and the Fire Union

You may have noticed at the early polling places that the fire union, APFF was asking citizens to sign their petition.  They may have explained the reason in terms of better hiring practices, etc.  So let me go into some things that they didn’t tell you.

The only reason that the fire union has this petition is to get Civil Service on the ballot in May.  The only reason they want Civil Service is because the union and the Fire Chief don’t get along.  If different people were in these positions, Civil Service wouldn’t be on the ballot.  This issue has been on the ballot twice before and was soundly defeated in 1979 and in 1991.  In both instances the margin was 65% against and 35% for. 

Civil Service allows promotions to be accomplished by testing only.  Highest score gets promoted.  There is no interview process, and personal skills are disregarded altogether.  A disciplinary problem is handled by a board of civilians, not fireman.  The board will be appointed, and a Civil Service Director will be hired, with taxpayer dollars, to run the process.   Currently we use a neutral arbitration process.  Since 2007 there have been 59 arbitrations, 47 police, 8 fire, and 4 civilian.  The current Chief has only been involved in 3 such arbitrations. The process works very well because only 4 decisions have been overturned in the last 9 years.  One was in the fire department.

During the last two years housing values have risen.  This increase has allowed the city to give much needed raises to our staff.  In this instance the firemen have received the biggest slice of the pie and their respective pay checks have risen above those of commensurate positions in other cities.  This apparently is not enough.  They want the Chief replaced.  So the Council has given the firefighters a good job, in a good city, with a very nice wage, allowing them a very nice standard of living, while only requiring a high school degree.  The Council has been sympathetic to the union in the past.  We responded to the publishing of “The Book” by accomplishing an audit.  The Chief was exonerated.  Then a survey was ordered by Council.  The Chief responded to the results, but the union did not.  Now it is Civil Service that the union wants.  This is a slap in the face to the Council.  If Civil Service is established  the following will happen:

1.  All firefighters in the same civil service classification will be entitled to the same base pay.  Any additional pay will be at the behest of the City Council.
2. Longevity or Seniority pay will be removed.
3. No 401K.
4. Assignment pay will be removed.
5. Educational and fitness pay will be removed.
6. Shift differential pay will be removed.
7. Swing pay will be removed.
8. 15 days of sick leave will be allowed each year.  A 90 day maximum lump, can be paid upon retirement.  (Previously 180 days)
9. 15 days of vacation each year is allotted.  No carry over is allowed from year to year.
10. No allocation of pay for union business.

All of the above have been granted in the past by Council.  I for one will not be voting to reinstate any of them.  If the union wants civil service then that is what they will get, not a hybrid of the current philosophy and civil service.  If the union has a problem with their Chief it should be resolved in house and not put on display to the citizens.  If they can’t live with the result of having the current Chief in his position, then there are other fire departments all over the Metroplex that you can transfer to.  For a union to be so concerned about W-2, it would seem that with this move power is the real motivator, and if it costs dollars to its members so be it.