PAX Centurion - January / February 2015

www.bppa.org PAX CENTURION • January/February 2015 • Page 5 Vice President’s Message: Michael F. Leary, BPPA Vice President It’s an honor to serve the BPPA I would like to start by thanking all of the members who came out to vote last December 9 th . The turnout was overwhelming, especially considering the lousy weather that day. It proved to me just how important the leadership positions are to the men and women of our Association and because of that, I am truly honored to have been elected as your vice president. A special thank you to my wife and also to the men and women of District A-7, otherwise known as the “East Boston Police Department.” It was a privilege to serve as the first half representative for so many years. The life long friendships I have made there mean the world to me. I could go on and on express- ing my gratitude, but the list would just be too long. Know that all the support, phones calls, conversations, and votes were all sincerely appreciated. There was not much of transition period after the election, we had to hit the ground running. Two bus trips had to be organized in order for us to pay our respects to our fallen brothers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu in New York City. We suffered the untimely death of one of our own, Michael Ramos, right before Christmas. Another one of ours was involved in “303” shooting incident and thankfully escaped serious injury. We have been busy with reorganizing, setting up and attending meetings, and seeing to the “routine” union business. One of my duties as vice president is to oversee the BPPA Grievance Committee. I would like to give the members a brief breakdown on the procedure that needs to be followed when our contract is violated and a grievance needs to be filed. There are five steps that can happen in the process. Step 1: Attempt to settle the dispute informally, orally, to a supervisor or officer in charge. Step 2: The shift representative presents the grievance to the Com- manding Officer of district or unit. Step 3: If it is not settled in five calendar days, griev- ance is to be submitted in writing to the Commissioner. My job as vice president would be to put this forward to the Deputy Superinten- dent of Labor Relations and arrange a meeting to resolve the grievance. Step 4: If it is not settled in five calendar days, another meeting is set up, but this time with the City Labor Department, the Police Department, and the BPPA. Both sides present their case and the City shall give an answer within five days. Step 5: The grievance is submitted for arbitration. At anytime, the grievance can be settled by mutual agreement. It also can be withdrawn or held in abeyance. Many times, these cases are drawn out and take so long because of attorney’s and arbitrator’s schedules. I wanted to give this snapshot of the process to help mem- bers understand why it can take so long to get a decision. I, along with the rest of the new leadership, am looking forward to working with Mayor MartinWalsh, Commissioner William Evans, and our department’s command staff. It is understood that are many issues we disagree upon, but I hope for an open dialogue in order to work them out and get the job done. I am also looking forward to working with all of our members, and getting to know as many of you as I can. Please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns. Be careful out there and watch out for one another. I would like to start by thanking all of the members who came out to vote last December 9 th . The turnout was overwhelming, especially considering the lousy weather that day. It proved to me just how important the leadership positions are to the men and women of our Association and because of that, I am truly honored to have been elected as your vice president. I, along with the rest of the new leadership, am looking forward to working with Mayor Martin Walsh, Commissioner William Evans, and our department’s command staff. It is understood that are many issues we disagree upon, but I hope for an open dialogue in order to work them out and get the job done. I am also looking forward to working with all of our members, and getting to know as many of you as I can.