Vallejo Independent Bulletin

IBEW Contemplates Appeal

Will High Stakes Game of Chicken Continue ?

9/3/09

By Marc Garman

Members of Vallejo's IBEW (International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers) met this evening to consider appealing the recent decision by Judge Michael McManus to allow the city to reject their contracts. “We're under a lot of national pressure to file an appeal, but our members' decision comes first.” said Ken Shoemaker; Vice President of IBEW local 2376. “We may file an appeal.” he said, “but the decision has not been made.”

In the dynamic created by recent events between the city and IBEW, an appeal would theoretically serve as a tool for leverage in negotiation on the union side. The union could offer to drop the appeal at some point in exchange for a consideration from the city.

Should negotiations drag on, though, and the union lose the appeal in the full Ninth Circuit, a precedent would be created that would extend over the largest judicial district in the US. A precedent giving cities the right to reject employee contracts would become the law in the West. This would represent a tremendous loss for organized labor nationally. Those of us who watch this whole thing thought it would be IAFF (International Association of Firefighters) and their contentious local leadership who would be the ones to go down in history for setting such a destructive precedent. It would be a true irony if IBEW lit the bomb.

In a recent Bond Buyer* article, Vallejo's lawyer Marc Levinson characterized an appeal as “more time, more money, more delay” and added that the money would be better spent paying employee wages at this point.

It all comes down to money in the end. Vallejo doesn't have much anymore. The longer the legal circus continues, the less there will be left in the pot to pay wages and benefits.

An appeal is a legal game of chicken with high risk and very marginal rewards. Both sides need to sit down and try to salvage what is left. Hope somebody swerves instead of hitting the gas.

* The Bond Buyer article indicates that IBEW HAS filed an appeal. IBEW VP Shoemaker indicated that this is not correct.

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Anonymous

|September.05.2009

IBEW I would be VERY careful. Can you imagine Henke dropping an appeal with his EGO? But IAFF international knew they could set a very dangerous precedent if they lost an appeal in the 9th circuit court. That would create new law that would be very very bad for unions. So give it up. It will be a waste of everyone's $ because in the end you all will have to back off because of the danger of setting precedent.

Streetsweeper

|September.04.2009

PSU was the target and now the city only has our union as their trophy. This whole thing is insane to the point of disbelief. The reps are telling us the Teacher's union, nurse's union, State workers union, and other big unions are throwing money our way to appeal because it may screw them if this judgment stands. Most of the members I talked to want this to end but do not trust the city. Guess we are front and center now.

Anonymous

|September.04.2009

IBEW Contemplates Appeal. It's good to know they're contemplating something.