Charter reform is always a contentious issue. The question for me is not about whether the unions will participate but instead, when and how will they participate. If they feel disrespected by the process they will be blindly opposed to all ideas. The police and fire unions in SB have shown they are willing to spend large amounts of money and human resources on politics. So should they have a seat on the charter review committee? In my opinion NO they should not be on the charter review committee BUT they should have a seat at the table before the city council takes action to put something on the ballot. After the charter committee comes up with their ideas but before it goes on the ballot there should be an open forum for all city employees to be allowed to comment on the ideas and offer suggestions. The city employees (union members) will provide insight into problems that might occur and could offer suggestions for ways to improve the charter the laymen might miss. The city council should act quickly to insure that city employees (union members) have an opportunity to weigh-in on this issue. It should be done in an open and transparent public meeting. That would be the best way to resolve the issue of union participation.
Posted on: Sat, 22 Mar 2014 18:26:55 +0000
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