Girard cops file labor dispute

By John W. Goodwin Jr.

City officials say they are waiting to clarify the new contract.

GIRARD — Police officers here have filed an unfair labor practice charge against the city, but city officials say the matter will be sorted out when terms of the contract are clarified.

The Ohio Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association filed the charges with the state Employment Relations Board on behalf of the officers Monday.

The complaint names Atty. Kevin Powers as representative for the officers. Calls to Powers’ office were not returned Thursday.

The complaint says the city has refused to pay officers newly negotiated wages retroactively to the start of the 2007 calendar year. It also claims the city has made changes to the negotiated health care plan without bargaining.

Jerry Lambert, safety service director, said the dispute comes down to a need for clarification on exactly what the officers and the city agreed upon earlier this year. The agreement changed certain aspects of the health care plan, but some officers were unclear as to what those changes are, he said.

According to Lambert, officers were to receive a 2 percent raise for 2008 and a 2 percent raise retroactively for 2007. Those raises, however, would be offset by changes in the newly negotiated health care plan.

Lambert said single officers pay $15 per month toward health care and families pay $30 per month. The new plan calls for an 80/20 percent split in cost with a $2,000 cap for families and a $1,000 cap for singles.

Lambert said the retroactive pay increases have not been issued because officials are waiting to sort out any misunderstandings in the health care plan. Once it is clarified, he said, there will be a determination of how much each officer is owed after the new health care terms are factored in.

“There are some questions as to what the police department agreed to and we wanted clarification before enacting both parts of the contract,” he said.

“We have a signed agreement. I wasn’t going to enact the changes in insurance until I gave them their rate increases for 2007 and 2008.”

The city has agreed to pay the officers the newly negotiated rate with the total of 4 percent in increases, but no retroactive pay has been issued. Lambert said clarification of the health care plan is still needed before that can be done.

jgoodwin@vindy.com