President Of Police Union Gives Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson A "D Plus" Grade In Leadership Ability
Cleveland Police Union President Stephen Loomis
Cleveland Mayor Frank G. Jackson
Posted Friday, January 1, 2010
(Cleveland, Ohio Area News)
By Kathy Wray Coleman
Editor of The Determiner Weekly.com and The
Kathy Wray Coleman Online News Blog and Media Network
Cleveland Police Union President Stephen Loomis has given Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson a “D plus” grade in the category of leadership ability following the layoffs last week of 67 police officers, 52 of whom completed the police academy with accolades from Jackson days before voters gave him a second term on Nov. 3. The layoffs become effective Jan. 11.
“He was a “B” in October but after the layoffs its a D plus,” said Loomis, president of the Cleveland Police Patrolman's Association since 2006. “He knew in June when he started the police academy of the financial issues and he went ahead so that he could pose for the cameras when they graduated only to layoff these babies who have families where some are single mothers and many quit prior jobs.”
Loomis did not hold his tongue in calling Cleveland's 57th mayor to task saying that Jackson is an elitist who is targeting the working class while failing to rid the city of top heavy administrators, and that he is allegedly unfair in refusing to ensure that layoffs include people from various city services arenas other than police, firefighters and other middle class and lower middle class types.
“He has more administrators and cabinet members than former mayors Campbell and White and he has failed to prioritize services by targeting the safety forces,” added Loomis. “He bragged during his campaign about a balanced budget and no layoffs for 2010. He was being disingenuous.”
The third Black mayor of the predominantly Black city who has support from the city's Black leadership including politicians, clergy and the Black press, the incumbent Jackson sailed to victory in November with 78 percent of the vote. But his political world began to tumble days after the election when police began to rubbish through the remains of 11 Black women found earlier at the Mt. Pleasant home of purported serial killer and rapist Anthony Sowell, who resided with the mayor's niece during the time of the alleged killings. Speculation swirled as to how Jackson's niece escaped unharmed and why city officials released Sowell from custody in 2008 following an attempted rape complaint where six of the murdered Black women went missing thereafter. And to make matters worse Jackson then announced a $23 million deficit during contract negotiations with police and other city unions, levied charges for trash pickup to the overwhelmingly impoverished residents, and threatened layoffs to police, firefighters and other labor personnel unless they agreed to a 4.5 percent pay cut, a measure that Loomis said his members rejected as unfair.
Loomis said that the 52 police men and women who passed the academy in October only to face layoffs less than two months later were members of a talented and diversified graduating class.
“At least a third are Black and a quarter are female,” said Loomis, before announcing that a grievance had been filed alleging bad faith negotiations by the city. And he said that he predicts that the grievance will become the subject of an alleged unfair labor practice given what he says is an attempt by Jackson and city negotiators to ram unfair concessions down the throats of union members while the mayor himself, Cleveland City Council members, and other ranking big shots get to keep every dime paid to them.
According to Loomis, the city has some 1250 police officers and 85 dispatchers. In addition to police, other city unions rejecting wage concessions are medical technicians and water plant operators, though firefighters, mechanics and machinists are still in negotiations.
Jackson spokesperson Andrea Taylor did not respond to an email request for comment made shortly before the New Year holiday break.
Cleveland Mayor Frank G. Jackson
Posted Friday, January 1, 2010
(Cleveland, Ohio Area News)
By Kathy Wray Coleman
Editor of The Determiner Weekly.com and The
Kathy Wray Coleman Online News Blog and Media Network
Cleveland Police Union President Stephen Loomis has given Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson a “D plus” grade in the category of leadership ability following the layoffs last week of 67 police officers, 52 of whom completed the police academy with accolades from Jackson days before voters gave him a second term on Nov. 3. The layoffs become effective Jan. 11.
“He was a “B” in October but after the layoffs its a D plus,” said Loomis, president of the Cleveland Police Patrolman's Association since 2006. “He knew in June when he started the police academy of the financial issues and he went ahead so that he could pose for the cameras when they graduated only to layoff these babies who have families where some are single mothers and many quit prior jobs.”
Loomis did not hold his tongue in calling Cleveland's 57th mayor to task saying that Jackson is an elitist who is targeting the working class while failing to rid the city of top heavy administrators, and that he is allegedly unfair in refusing to ensure that layoffs include people from various city services arenas other than police, firefighters and other middle class and lower middle class types.
“He has more administrators and cabinet members than former mayors Campbell and White and he has failed to prioritize services by targeting the safety forces,” added Loomis. “He bragged during his campaign about a balanced budget and no layoffs for 2010. He was being disingenuous.”
The third Black mayor of the predominantly Black city who has support from the city's Black leadership including politicians, clergy and the Black press, the incumbent Jackson sailed to victory in November with 78 percent of the vote. But his political world began to tumble days after the election when police began to rubbish through the remains of 11 Black women found earlier at the Mt. Pleasant home of purported serial killer and rapist Anthony Sowell, who resided with the mayor's niece during the time of the alleged killings. Speculation swirled as to how Jackson's niece escaped unharmed and why city officials released Sowell from custody in 2008 following an attempted rape complaint where six of the murdered Black women went missing thereafter. And to make matters worse Jackson then announced a $23 million deficit during contract negotiations with police and other city unions, levied charges for trash pickup to the overwhelmingly impoverished residents, and threatened layoffs to police, firefighters and other labor personnel unless they agreed to a 4.5 percent pay cut, a measure that Loomis said his members rejected as unfair.
Loomis said that the 52 police men and women who passed the academy in October only to face layoffs less than two months later were members of a talented and diversified graduating class.
“At least a third are Black and a quarter are female,” said Loomis, before announcing that a grievance had been filed alleging bad faith negotiations by the city. And he said that he predicts that the grievance will become the subject of an alleged unfair labor practice given what he says is an attempt by Jackson and city negotiators to ram unfair concessions down the throats of union members while the mayor himself, Cleveland City Council members, and other ranking big shots get to keep every dime paid to them.
According to Loomis, the city has some 1250 police officers and 85 dispatchers. In addition to police, other city unions rejecting wage concessions are medical technicians and water plant operators, though firefighters, mechanics and machinists are still in negotiations.
Jackson spokesperson Andrea Taylor did not respond to an email request for comment made shortly before the New Year holiday break.
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