Council OKs Meet-and-Confer Agreement with San Angelo Coalition of Police
San Angelo Coalition of Police President Korby Kennedy and Officer Rick Tinsley await the results of the local contract ratification vote. The contract was approved by the city council and ratified by the local officers.
By Mike Sheffield / CLEAT Staff Representative
The San Angelo City Council on Tuesday June 23rd approved on the consent agenda the negotiated agreement between the City and San Angelo Coalition of Police represented by a CLEAT negotiator at the bargaining table. The agreement had already been approved and ratified on May 27th and 28th. At that time the negotiated agreement was passed by an over whelming margin of San Angelo Police Officers. The vote was 101 for passage of the agreement and 36 against with 1 abstention. This was a 73% approval of the agreement.
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CLEAT Fights in the Legislative Trenches for Our Members’ Rights
By John Burpo, CLEAT Executive Director
The results are in from the 81st Texas legislative session; and it is clear that CLEAT was in the middle of every fight that involved improving or protecting our members rights. There were significant gains made on behalf of our members even as the much publicized fight over voter I.D. bogged down most bills in the Texas Legislature.
Some of the significant labor improvements included health insurance protections for surviving spouses, population reduction for legislative leave, a prohibition against using public money for false advertising in issue elections, witness pay for arbitration hearings, and prohibition against sheriff civil service commissions increasing punishment beyond the original recommendation, and tuition exemptions for peace officers. There was also an abundance of bills that CLEAT vehemently opposed on such issues as reduction of civil service rights and TMRS benefits, abolition of the death penalty, and a variety of bills to restrict peace officer power and authority.
CLEAT Legal Victory in El Paso
Nobody will ever really know why Constable Luis Aguilar of El Paso fired Deputy Constable Alfonso Frias. All they will know is that CLEAT attorney Jim Jopling exposed the termination as unjust. After taking office, Constable Aguilar terminated Alfonso Frias, based upon very serious charges of criminal conduct. Deputy Constable Frias’ reputation, after nearly three decades of stellar service in law enforcement, was ruined. But not for long. CLEAT’s own investigation into the matter revealed that the entire termination file was concocted. After a lengthy hearing, the El Paso Civil Service Commission unanimously reinstated Deputy Constable Frias with full back pay, rank, seniority and benefits.