First Thursday

A previous version of this podcast included the wrong recording. Will discusses Minnesota’s sweeping new police reform billp just passed last night. Sections 1 & 3, Peer Counseling (00:01:20) Section 2, Critical Incident Stress Management Data (00:05:11) Section 4, Critical Incident Stress Management Team Members (00:05:25) Section 5, Independent Use of Force Investigations Unit (00:07:2...

Covered in this month’s podcast: Labor and employment issues coming out of the pandemic (00:00:43) The police reform movement (00:03:56) Brady Does Not Allow Employer To Fire Officer Without Providing Reasons, Borough of Gettysburg v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Local 776, 2020 WL 3022985 (Pa. Cmwlth. 2020) (00:15:01) Contract’s Wage Provisions Not Constitutionally Protected, Sul...

The Senate Republican bill on police reform has been released and Will covers the big takeaways. Download our table comparing President’s Trump’s executive order, the senate Democrat’s bill, the senate Republican’s bill and proposed legislation out of the state of Colorado.

Will covers police reform legislation proposed by U.S. Senate Democrats and the state of Colorado as well as President Trump’s executive order on police reform. President Trump’s Executive Order U.S. Senate Democrat’s Bill Colorado Senate Bill 20-217 Police Reform Legislation Table

Introduction (00:05:43) The Rules Your First Amendment rights are very limited. (00:07:04) Just because something is an Internet meme doesn’t mean you can post it. (00:08:40) Nothing you post online is truly private. Check your privacy settings. But remember nothing you post is truly private. (00:09:41) Before posting, ask yourself: if my employer receives a […]

Cases covered: ADA Does Not Require Light Duty For Oft-Injured Officer, Scott v. City of Detroit, 2020 WL 2505385 (Mich. App. 2020) A Small Dent In The ‘Firefighter’s Rule’, Ipsen v. Diamond Tree Experts, 2020 WL 2568536 (Utah 2020) One-Year Membership Period Does Not Violate Janus, Molina v. Pennsylvania Social Service Union, 2020 WL 2306650 […]

In this special bonus podcast, Will discusses the recent controversies in policing, how they affect public safety unions and what unions can do to fight the trend. Headlines (00:00:42) Ten things police unions should be thinking about doing (00:05:16) Engage at all levels (00:08:21) Listen (00:10:38) Get your message out (00:12:15) Be proactive (00:20:18) React […]

Topics covered: Status of COVID-19 presumptive causation laws (00:01:39) Hazardous duty pay (00:30:28) The impact on the collective bargaining process (00:34:13) Enforcement of governors’ emergency orders (00:38:27) Presumptive Causation Status Jacobson v. Massachusetts, 197 U.S. 11 (1905)

Impact of COVID-19 Presumptive Causation Hazardous Duty Pay FFCRA Paid Leave Budget Issues Are officers at risk when arresting citizens not in compliance with a state’s lockdown orders? Are state lockdown orders constitutional? Gibbons v. Ogden Jacobson v. Massachusetts No beard policies and face maskshttps://www.14news.com/2020/04/28/bearded-md-police-officers-paid-leave-due-cdc-guidelines/ Diffe...

Covered in this month’s podcast: Presumptive causation laws Changes to the California Peace Officer Bill of Rights (California Executive Order N-40-20) Philadelphia’s contract rollover for police officers Training Cost Repayment Agreement Cannot Conflict With CBA, Town of Bennington v. Knight, 2020 WL 966350 (Vt. 2020) Injunctions And Grievances Don’t Usually Mix, Fraternal Order of Police [...

Will Aitchison presents COVID-19 policy issues in a Q&A format. The questions along with their timestamps are as follows: Is the employer’s policy centralized? In other words, is there a single document that includes all aspects of your policy as opposed to a dozen different documents in a dozen different forms? (00:01:36) Does the employer […]

In this special podcast, Will covers the latest developments concerning the COVID-19 outbreak and public safety labor and employment. All the links mentioned in the podcast can be found here.

This month’s cases: Firefighters, Facial Hair, The ‘Empty Vessel’ Of Light Duty, And The ‘Driving Calculus of Bureaucracy,’ Bey v. City of New York, 2020 WL 467507 (E.D.N.Y. 2020). Promise Of No Discipline? No Weingarten Rights, Fraternal Order of Transit Police, 51 PPER ¶ 51 (Penn. LRB ALJ 2020) Another Officer Loses A Brady Lawsuit […]

Developments with the Plain View Project First Lawsuit Against Plain View Project Is Dismissed, Pace v. Baker-White, 2020 WL 134316 (E.D. Pa. 2020) Firefighter Fired For Refusing Vaccination, Accommodation, Horvath v. City of Leander, 2020 WL 104345 (5th Cir. 2020). County Required To Arbitrate ‘Me-Too’ Grievance, County of Rockland, 2019 WL 6720466 (N.Y.A.D. 2019). Romantic […]

Will Aitchison discusses the fallout from a photo of Detroit firefighters posing in front of a burned house and the dangers of social media posting for public safety employees. ‘No-Contact’ Order Ruled Illegal, Oakdale Police Officers Association v. City of Oakdale, 44 PERC ¶ 99 (Cal. PERB ALJ 2019) The NLRB Approves Greater Confidentiality in […]

This month’s cases: Employer May Not Unilaterally Impose Waiver Of Right To Bargain, Gator Lodge Number 67, FOP v. City of Gainesville, 46 FPER ¶ 169 (Fla. PERC 2019). Not Improper ‘Direct Dealing’ For Negotiators To Have Sidebar Discussion, Jamison v. East Lake Tarpon Special Fire Control District, 46 FPER ¶ 153 (Fla. PERC Gen. […]

This month, Will covers three recent news stories and four cases. News articles: Alaska State Troopers find fix for hiring woes: More pay https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/crime-courts/2019/11/07/pay-hikes-drive-surge-of-job-seekers-to-alaska-state-troopers/ Hennepin County Attorney’s Office on New Protocol: ‘No Privacy Rights in a Criminal Investigation’https://alphanewsmn.com/hennepin-county-attor...

Will discusses a recently released study from the Police Executive Research Forum study on the recruitment and retention crisis. Staying on this topic, Will talks about an article from the Omaha World-Herald on the workforce shortages in public employment in the state of Nebraska. Cases covered this month: When Is Harassing Conduct ‘Severe’ Enough? Perry […]

Update: The fallout from the Plain View Project. The Plain View Project is run by a Philadelphia attorney who seeks to reveal the identity of law enforcement officers in eight jurisdictions who post what the attorney deems as sexist, racist or other unsuitable messages on Facebook. Cases: Employer Must Provide Information Before, Not After, Loudermill […]

Will interviews Tenari Ma’afala and Vladimir Devens of the State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers (SHOPO) about the state’s unusual collective bargaining law, how they fixed their recruitment and retention problem, arbitration stories, and the standard of conduct differential. LISTEN

Will gives (yet another) warning about potential dangers posed by social media for public safety employees. He gives several recent examples of law enforcement, corrections and fire protection employees who have lost their jobs over controversial social media posts. Cases covered this month: ‘Exploding’ Offers Can Be Bad-Faith Bargaining, City of Arcadia (2019) PERB Decision […]

Will gives another, very necessary, warning about posting on supposedly private social media forums. He also discusses these cases: Deputy Cannot Sue Prosecutor For Wrongful Placement On Brady List, Harris v. Chelan County Sheriff’s Department, 2019 WL 1923924 (E.D. Wa. 2019). Seniority Prevails Over ADA For Day Off Selection, McIntyre v. Washington Metropolitan Area Transit […]

Will talks about the Plain View Project, an online database of Facebook posts and comments by current and former law enforcement officers that include racist, sexist, anti-Muslim and other controversial sentiments. He also covers the following cases: Employer Cannot Refuse To Negotiate With Union’s Lawyer, FOP, Lodge 109 v. SEPTA, 50 PPER ¶ 7 (Penn. […]

Will covers four cases this month including a Florida case that deals with the relationship between Garrity and Miranda and an Illinois case involving the relationship between HIPAA and the ADA in regards to fitness for duty evaluations. Full list of cases: How Miranda and Garrity Relate To Each Other, State of Florida v. Socarras, […]

Jim Porter of the Bend, Oregon Police Department discusses how a focus on the emotional and physical health of a police department can transform the morale, productivity, and job satisfaction of officers. In the five years he has held his position, Chief Porter has implemented a number of innovative programs designed to improve the well-being […]