BEFORE YOU READ
THIS ... I WANT YOU TO KNOW THE FOLLOWING:
MY BROTHER DON
FIRST OFFERED THIS TO THE ATLANTIC CITY PRESS, AS A
GUEST COLUMN"
(APPROXIMATELY 10 DAYS AGO) ...
DON LEARNED TODAY
THAT HIS "GUEST COLUMN" WOULD NOT BE PRINTED ... HENCE, WE ARE OFFERING IT NOW
AT HARRYHURLEY.COM ...
READ ON
... YOU WILL LEARN WHY THE ATLANTIC CITY PRESS WOULD NOT PRINT DON'S COLUMN
...
YOU DECIDE IF THIS
IS NEWS!
WE CAN'T HELP BUT
NOTE THAT IT IS AN EXCELLENT, HIGHLY NEWSWORTHY AND WELL WRITTEN COLUMN ...
WRITTEN BY A FORMER AC PBA PRESIDENT ... SHOCKING HOW BIASED THE AC
PRESS CONTINUES TO
CONDUCT ITSELF
...
Who's Really Winning The
Battle? By DON
HURLEY
Contributing
Editor
HarryHurley.com
I read with interest a recent letter to
the Editor of The Press by Atlantic City PBA Vice President
Bennett. Within this letter, it was his position that
the city lawyers are winning the battle for billable hours in
their ongoing fight with the city administration.
More interestingly though, Bennett
fails to mention how much the PBA has paid to their high priced attorney,
Sid Lehmann. Even more importantly though, what results have the members of the
PBA received from this expensive lawyer?
It would also be instructive to know,
just how much, the PBA has paid to Lehmann over the last 5
years? I urge the members of the PBA to ask their leaders, and than to compare
this with what the PBA paid for legal expenses in the 4 years before
that.
Why did Bennett feel it was
only important to report on what city lawyers are making? Isn't
it equally as important what the PBA has wasted on their own Sid
Lehmann, Esq.?
Lehmann is the same attorney who felt
it necessary to contest such "important issues," as who the city's broker
of record would be, even though it would have no affect upon the members health
or insurance benefits. I wonder how much of the members money was wasted
fighting meaningless issues such as this and others?
I wish the people, like Bennett, had
the same righteous concern when Jim Whelan REALLY was trying to take
away our blue cross and blue shield health benefits just a few
short years ago. (We could have used the help.)
I can recall that just a few
years ago the PBA was battling real issues with Jim Whelan. Issues such as
Whelan's blanket branding of the men and women of the ACPD as Mafia
Gangsters, trying to steal the leadership of the Police Department away by
attempting to eliminate the Chief's position, firing decent hard
working officers for no good cause, just to name a few.
I could have only hoped at that
time, to be "fighting" with a Mayor, like Lorenzo Langford, who wanted
to offer our members a 21% pay increase over 3 or 4
years!
Bennett further stated that the PBA
leaders today do not have a political agenda. I find this most
noteworthy coming from the same leaders who endorsed Craig Callaway for
City Council in the previous election. This was in spite of the fact it was
without the consent of the members of the PBA, and against the
governing By-laws. It should also be noted that this endorsement had to be taken
away from Callaway, when our members took the PBA leaders, such as Bennett,
to task for their improper action.
As for the issue
of squandered attorney fees being applied to replace supposedly
broken police radios. Where has Bennett been for the past 25 years, when no tac
radio has ever worked inside of most of the Casinos and the Medical
Center to name a few dead spots in and around the city? Is this
somehow a new issue to him?
Bennett claims that if "egos" could be
checked in, than maybe they could settle a fair and reasonable contract with the
city. As he well knows, the time for settling a contract has long since passed,
and the matter is before a State Arbitrator who will resolve the matter for
them. A better question that should be answered: why were most all
of the other city unions so successful in negotiating with the city
administration?
In the end, I find it strange that
Bennett would be the one complaining about attorney fees. It was his
type of leadership that refused to settle a contract with the Mayor of Atlantic
City, who offered to do it without Attorneys on either side. Wouldn't this have
been a truly novel approach to the contrary and contentious
negotiations by the PBA leaders? By the way, it is important to note
that I do not see the Police Deputy Chiefs or Captains complaining,
all of whom chose a different direction and spirit.
It appears obvious to me though, that
Bennett, is one of those who failed to check their ego and political agenda at
the door. This is truly an illustration of why it is the President of
any group who should be the spokesperson for it's members.
Bennett sorely missed the mark from his position.
What is sad, though, it is the PBA
members who have suffered from this poor management of
it's leaders. In successful negotiations; everyone wins. The leaders of the
PBA have truly failed their members this time around. It saddens me to see this,
in what should have been a time of great opportunity.
The leaders of the PBA were more
interested in doing war with Mayor Langford, who had no interest in
fighting with them, and who had offered the PBA more than any Mayor
in the last three decades.
I'll leave it to you to decide who you
believe is winning this battle. My letter clearly states who I believe has.
One thing that is certain, however. In
the end, the PBA members will not receive a two-year wage freeze from Mayor
Langford, such as the one that Jim Whelan stuck them with a few years ago. This
wage freeze by Whelan occurred after leaving them without a contract
into a fourth year.
And, I didn't hear Bennett complaining
then.
Writers
Note: Don P. Hurley is a retired Atlantic City Police Officer, and the
former President of Atlantic City PBA, Local
#24.