You Are Out of Order!

 The following conversation has been paraphrased for brevity. And is not intended to be taken as quotes. However, the intent and outcome are the exact same.

Leadership: Your motion is ruled out of order.

Member: How is it out of order?

Leadership: Its a negotiable item.

Member: How is a motion to poll the membership negotiable or contractual?

Leadership: Its not.

Member: Then how is my motion out of order?

Leadership: Because its negotiable, its a contract item.

Member:  uhhh...WHAT? Are you serious?

Leadership:   yes

Member: One more time just for clarification, how is a motion to poll the membership related to the contract?

Leadership: Its not.

Member: How is a motion to the poll the membership negotiable?

Leadership: Its not.

Member: So how is the motion out of order?

Leadership: Its contractual, its a negotiable item.

Member: and your serious?

Leadership: yes


   If only this was fiction!

 Rights come with responsibilities, because you have the right to have your opinions fairly heard, debated and voted on, means you have the responsibility to stand up for it, when you see it being trampled on.

Attention Members of Local 1285

Here is a letter from your Local president:

Dear Members:

This letter is to make it clear to everyone that there will be no action taken regarding the 48/96 shift schedule at the regular membership meeting scheduled for September 15, 2011 or any other regular meeting of this local.

Nevada Revised Statue is very clear on what is negotiable.  I am amazed that members published a fact sheet with the first statement being that the 48/96 shift schedule is not negotiable. What that means is the Chief could tell us today that we are working 1 day on and 2 days off or that we will start working the CCFD schedule?  What would you think about that? Would you think that the Chief could just make that change?  What would you want the union to do?

I have personally told both members pushing the 48/96 shift schedule months ago in a meeting with them that this is negotiable. I also told them the time and place to deal with this issue is at the Special Meeting for negotiations.  The Chief has also shared a copy of an email sent to one of our members pushing 48/96 and the position of the City regarding this work schedule.

(SEE ATTACHED EMAIL)

Remember where we are at right now in the fact finding process of our current contract negotiations. The focus of your principal officers is on preventing a salary rollback, protecting the Health & Welfare Trust Fund, and our Clothing Allowance.

Sincerely,

Dean Fletcher, President

IAFF LOCAL 1285

  The following is the NRS Statue that he mentioned without telling you which one it is. Why he did not want to actually tell you the NRS that he was talking about is anyones guess, but I think maybe it was because he was hoping you would not go look it up, so I did it for you. As you can see there is NOTHING in the NRS that would keep members from bringing this ideal forward, as NOTHING in the proposed 48/96 that Sarah is working on conflicts with this statute. 

NRS 288.150  Negotiations by employer with recognized employee organization: Subjects of mandatory bargaining; matters reserved to employer without negotiation.

      1.  Except as provided in subsection 4, every local government employer shall negotiate in good faith through one or more representatives of its own choosing concerning the mandatory subjects of bargaining set forth in subsection 2 with the designated representatives of the recognized employee organization, if any, for each appropriate bargaining unit among its employees. If either party so requests, agreements reached must be reduced to writing.

      2.  The scope of mandatory bargaining is limited to:

      (a) Salary or wage rates or other forms of direct monetary compensation.

      (b) Sick leave.

      (c) Vacation leave.

      (d) Holidays.

      (e) Other paid or nonpaid leaves of absence.

      (f) Insurance benefits.

      (g) Total hours of work required of an employee on each workday or workweek.

      (h) Total number of days’ work required of an employee in a work year.

      (i) Discharge and disciplinary procedures.

      (j) Recognition clause.

      (k) The method used to classify employees in the bargaining unit.

      (l) Deduction of dues for the recognized employee organization.

      (m) Protection of employees in the bargaining unit from discrimination because of participation in recognized employee organizations consistent with the provisions of this chapter.

      (n) No-strike provisions consistent with the provisions of this chapter.

      (o) Grievance and arbitration procedures for resolution of disputes relating to interpretation or application of collective bargaining agreements.

      (p) General savings clauses.

      (q) Duration of collective bargaining agreements.

      (r) Safety of the employee.

      (s) Teacher preparation time.

      (t) Materials and supplies for classrooms.

      (u) The policies for the transfer and reassignment of teachers.

      (v) Procedures for reduction in workforce.

      3.  Those subject matters which are not within the scope of mandatory bargaining and which are reserved to the local government employer without negotiation include:

      (a) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (u) of subsection 2, the right to hire, direct, assign or transfer an employee, but excluding the right to assign or transfer an employee as a form of discipline.

      (b) The right to reduce in force or lay off any employee because of lack of work or lack of money, subject to paragraph (v) of subsection 2.

      (c) The right to determine:

             (1) Appropriate staffing levels and work performance standards, except for safety considerations;

             (2) The content of the workday, including without limitation workload factors, except for safety considerations;

             (3) The quality and quantity of services to be offered to the public; and

             (4) The means and methods of offering those services.

      (d) Safety of the public.

      4.  Notwithstanding the provisions of any collective bargaining agreement negotiated pursuant to this chapter, a local government employer is entitled to take whatever actions may be necessary to carry out its responsibilities in situations of emergency such as a riot, military action, natural disaster or civil disorder. Those actions may include the suspension of any collective bargaining agreement for the duration of the emergency. Any action taken under the provisions of this subsection must not be construed as a failure to negotiate in good faith.

      5.  The provisions of this chapter, including without limitation the provisions of this section, recognize and declare the ultimate right and responsibility of the local government employer to manage its operation in the most efficient manner consistent with the best interests of all its citizens, its taxpayers and its employees.

      6.  This section does not preclude, but this chapter does not require the local government employer to negotiate subject matters enumerated in subsection 3 which are outside the scope of mandatory bargaining. The local government employer shall discuss subject matters outside the scope of mandatory bargaining but it is not required to negotiate those matters.

      7.  Contract provisions presently existing in signed and ratified agreements as of May 15, 1975, at 12 p.m. remain negotiable.

      (Added to NRS by 1969, 1377; A 1971, 1503; 1975, 919; 1983, 1622; 1987, 743, 1496, 1607; 1989, 1165)

  Unless of course he was referring to a different NRS, Its just my guess that the one about whats negotiable and whats not, was the one he was referring to, but that still remains to be seen.

A Patriotic Pledge of Allegiance Video from the Tea Party Nation

To watch video click here

From the Garland County Tea Party

   This video is worth the 14 minutes, it clearly lays out the choice we are facing in 2012.


 After watching the video ask yourself, what organization you may belong to and support with your money that is openly calling for global governance at the expense of our individual freedom and liberty.  When you do that,  then ask yourself why?  At what point will patriotic Americans put aside their self interest for the preservation of freedom not only in our country but in the world.  If you agree with the message then ask yourself, what do I intend to do about it?  I can tell you it would not  take much to do something about it.  If you are interested then drop me a line.  rsqrog@msn.com

House Fire, First Due Quick Attack

Watch Video Here

A Tangled Web Indeed!

   In 1967 Egypt, Syria and Jordan prepared to invade and annihilate Israel.  The Israelites at the time recognized the impending attack and launched a pre-emptive strike against Egypt’s amassed army.  Syria and Jordan used this as an excuse to launch their already amassed armies into Israel.  What resulted is what history calls the Six Day War.   Conducting a pre-emptive strike was Israel’s only means to victory in the impending war, and they defeated the Arab armies and secured their borders.

    You may be asking yourself what this has to do with you as a firefighter and member of the IAFF.  Allow me to explain.  As a member of Local 1285 we pay membership dues.  Our leadership pays dues on our behalf to the IAFF. The IAFF in turn pays dues to and is a member of the AFL CIO.  The AFL CIO is a very large umbrella organization with many affiliated, sponsored and partnered organizations underneath it.  Richard Trumka is the President of the AFL CIO.  You might say he is Harold’s Schaitberger’s (General president of the IAFF) boss.  The AFL CIO takes the dues we pay and conducts its business with no real input from us.  Our only form of input is through our Local Leaders who elect our regional leaders, who elect our national leaders, who would then elect guys like Trumka.  Do you even know who is above your Local President?  With that in mind, do we really have any input on what the AFL CIO does with our money?  The obvious answer is no, and that is the crux of the matter. The problem is our national union leaders know this, and use our money for things that would blow your mind.   Here is an example;

   One of the “partner organizations” that the AFL CIO gives money to is the American Center for International Solidarity.  You can find their web site here . Rest easy though because the $600, 000 a year we give through the AFL CIO is only on top of the nearly 29 million dollars it receives a year through “federal awards”  ( that’s code for US TAX dollars).  Did I mention that Richard Trumka the president of the AFL CIO is also the Secretary Treasurer of this organization they commonly refer to as the Solidarity Center?   You can see the 2010 annual report for the Solidarity Center here to confirm this information.   While you are at it though check out the interesting work we are helping pay for in Egypt.  In the report on page 5 you can find a picture of Mr. Trumka standing with a couple fine citizens of Egypt that he so graciously gave the George Meany-Lane Kirkland Award.  Or should I say, we gave, since it is our money?  The fine gentleman on the right is Kamal Abu Eita President of RETA (Independent General Union of Real Estate Tax Authority Workers) and on his left is Kamal Abbas director of CTUWS (Center for Trade Union and Workers’ Services).   Some simple google searching will lead you to some videos of these fine gentlemen. 

 This one here is Kamal Abu Eita take the time to watch it, it’s a quick 32 seconds, and it reveals so much in those 32 seconds. Watch Video Here

    So He is obviously very proud of his education that he earned in college in 1976.   He also let us know that he could not get a job because he was a “security risk” from his involvement with the “student movements”, which he is also obviously very proud of.    

   You have to be saying to yourself, get to the point already, right?  Well this is it where comes full circle to the beginning of this post.  You have to ask yourself now, well what was the “student movement” in the early 1970’s in Egypt that he was a part of?   After the Six Days war, Israel remained in control of the captured territories in order to keep “defensible” borders and prevent another war.  The incoming president of Egypt, President Sadat had promised during his campaign to once again go to war with Israel and recapture the territories it lost during the Six Days War.  He failed to do so, and this is what most of the “student movements” in the early 1970’s Arab world were all about.  It is really no big deal; it just spawned little groups like the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas and Hezbollah.  This of course would eventually evolve into the fight over the plight of the Palestinian people.   You say, so what. 1970’s Egypt was so long ago and so far away; it has nothing to do with me, and my union today.  Well check out this next video, that has both of our friends from Egypt in it. If you pause the video at the 44-second mark you will see on the wall behind our dutiful union organizer three little handmade placards of a flag. watch video here  That ,if you do not recognize it is the Palestinian Flag.  Now you may blow this off as just a shear coincidence that our “union friends” that we are standing in solidarity with just happen to have been born out of the anti-Israel,  anti- USA student movements of the 1970’s ,  and you may say to yourself that three little placards of a flag in a 2009 video does not prove they still feel the same way, they are just workers of the world uniting in a common struggle against imperialism.  You could also check out some current photos from this years protest, and not only see some pictures of our “union friends” in action during this protest but you can check out the in color poster taped to the wall of their meeting place. see pictures here  Don’t let it concern you though it is just a picture of the Honorable Martyr Sheik Yassin.  That doesn’t ring a bell for you, didn’t for me either, so I had to look him up, no big deal, just a leader of Hamas.  Oh it is just a poster you say, not conclusive enough for you.  You are right. My wife does have paintings of roses up in our house, but that does not mean I like roses, I get it, you are correct, not conclusive.  Well lets try something a little more current, no posters, no pictures, how about Kamal’s words. Now we have to go way back to, oh I don’t know, way back to March 7^th of 2011 where once again our “union friend” was a feature interview on ITUC (International Trade Union Confederation) which bye the way you can find all over the AFL CIO Blogs. see article here In this interview he said of the recent protest in Egypt,  “I had a feeling of indescribable joy at seeing my lifelong dream coming true.” “We had already started to battle and demonstrate for a revolution of this kind back in 1972, within a students’ committee. But its time had not yet come”.

    You say he was just reminiscing, well to that I say how about this quote from the same article,   “We have serious concerns about the Labour Minister. I had a sleepless night after learning from the television that the new government’s labour minister was a member of the ETUF leadership. There was no way we could accept it. The deputy prime minister then asked to meet Kamal Abbas of the CTUWS (***) who supports independent unions and offered him the post of labour minister. But we recommended Ahmed Hassan El Bouray, who has been an ILO expert.”

    So who is it that he was recommending as an expert and what is the ILO?  Well, he is an Egyptian Professor of Law and is a big time player in the United Nations, and has advised, written, chaired, and pretty much steered the UN’s middle east involvement with Labor organizations dating all the way back, according to his 5 pages of selected foot notes from his online personal resume, to , can you guess it?????  That’s right….  1970’s  Egypt, wow what a coincidence!  So what of the ILO?  This is the International Labor Organization from the United Nations. Here is a link to there latest report. Its Titled  “Working in the Occupied Arab Territories” You need not look any further than the title, if you understand the language. You see we in the west have a word for the “Occupied Arab Territories”,  we call it Israel. See the report here

   Just one more quick note, in the same 2010 report from the Solidarity Center you may want to check out the work we are doing in Pakistan with the PWF (Pakistan Workers’ Federation). Just ignore the part where they are organizing and protesting against the “United States illegal raids” into their sovereign territories, you know the ones they were hiding OBL in, and ignore the current headlines of the militant and violent protest against the USA they are currently part of in Pakistan, because hey, you know we are all just workers trying to get ahead.

    Remember this, they call Israel the Little Satan, and they call us the Big Satan. These people are not our friends.

    If standing with socialist and communist is not enough to get your attention, how about the Islamist.  Are we now going to stand bye silently while our labor organizations use our money and tax payer dollars to help organize the enemies of not just our country, but of our very way of life?

  Are we as members of Las Vegas Firefighters Local 1285 going to sit silently by while our Union stands in solidarity with the AFL CIO who continues to fund and organize the very people who danced in the street as 343 of our brothers were making the supreme sacrifice.  Is that what the IAFF has become?  Is this what we stand for?  Are we going to continue to support with our money the very people who openly state how they want to wipe Israel off the map?  Is this who we have become?

   Wouldn’t it be fitting that as the ten-year anniversary of 9-11 approaches we as firefighters kept our promise we gave after 3000 of our fellow countrymen were slaughtered, to never forget. Wouldn’t it be appropriate if we lead the way once again during dark times, and we made a sacrifice?  We as a local need to tell the IAFF, to publicly and loudly disband all ties with the AFL CIO, and if they will not, then we as a local should disband all association with the IAFF.  We do not need them, they need us.   Uniformed Firefighters of Southern Nevada sounds good to me.

    

"Laughable"

    I can take a deep breath now and let out a huge sigh of relief.  I have been informally informed that I am no longer “dangerous”.  It appears that tactic has failed, and since I am still here, and still typing I guess they have to try a new tactic.

     I am going bald and at times fall behind on my haircut schedule. This may give me a “bozo the clown” hairstyle, but do not let that interfere with serious nature of the subjects that are discussed here.

    I am concerned about the future stability of my Country.  I am concerned about the future stability of my pension, my pay, and my health insurance. I do not consider discussions on these matters, laughable, funny or anywhere approaching the realm of a joke. 

    Now that it has been determined that I am no longer dangerous, I am trying to figure out which part of this is now “laughable”.  Is it laughable that certain Union Leaders are conducting our business in a dishonorable fashion?  Is that the funny part?  How about the demise and downfall of the US dollar, you know the little green backs we use to buy EVERYTHING we need to survive, is that the funny part?  Wait, I got it, it must be the part where our own members have to make motions, to FORCE our Union Leaders to give us access to the rules that govern our meetings, that must be the hilarious part.   Maybe it is the part where the AFL CIO and our union leaders are standing with the enemies of a free America, you know the socialist, communist, and anarchist.  The very people many of us joined the military to oppose.  It must be hilarious now that guys who have actually been in combat in the service of their country are now being told by their union leadership to stand with the very people trying to destroy our Country.  Excuse me for not thinking that’s funny. I must have lost my sense of humor over on the horn of Africa when I was serving my Country.  Wait a minute, no I didn’t because there are some things I think are funny.

     What I find laughable is my leadership’s inability to refute what I am saying in these posts.  Maybe if they did that, then we could all laugh together.  What I find laughable is the predictable and petty tactics used against me by my own leadership.

I find it laughable when my union leaders take the time to concern themselves with what stickers I have on my turnout locker.  I find it laughable when my union leaders say “brotherhood”. 

   You see, I used to be on the executive board of my union, I led our Union Honor Guard for 10 years, I stood shoulder to shoulder with these men for 14 years, I supported them, they supported me, until I had the audacity to disagree. Once I did that, we found out exactly how “cheaply” that “brotherhood” was disregarded.

    When this newest tactic runs it course, I will still be standing here, I will still be speaking, can we then talk openly and honestly about these things?