Vote YES on Measure B (Binding Interest Arbitration)

∙ Measure B will provide a FAIR and IMPARTIAL process to resolve disputes for Police Officers and Firefighters.

∙ The Santa Clara City Council voted to put Measure B on the ballot so the voters of Santa Clara could decide.

∙ Our Police Officers and Firefighters deserve a FAIR system to settle disputes for putting their lives on the line for us every day.

∙ The binding arbitration process provided by Measure B won’t give Police Officers and Firefighters as many rights as other employees, but it gives them a FAIR chance – a chance they don’t have now.

Download the flyer here

Vote YES on Measure B (Binding Interest Arbitration)

Measure B is about one thing and one thing only; a fair decision making process for our police officers and firefighters. It’s not about wages, hours or working conditions…it’s about fairness for our public safety officers.

Public safety officers need binding interest arbitration because it’s the right thing to do. Currently when there is an unresolved dispute during negotiations, and the issue cannot be resolved, the City’s final decision will be imposed on the police officers and firefighters. The City’s decision cannot be appealed.

All other Santa Clara City employee bargaining units have the right to exercise one last step…the strike. Police officers and firefighters are prohibited by law from going on strike, and rightly so.

Santa Clara’s citizen’s safety is too important to jeopardize with a strike. Police and firefighters cannot strike; therefore there is no recourse to resolve disputes fairly.

Our police officers and firefighters deserve to have a fair process that provides a level playing field. A Yes Vote on Measure B will provide that fair and impartial process to resolve disputes.

The arbitration process provided by Measure B does not guarantee that our public safety officers will win every time. But it gives them a fair chance, a chance they don’t have now.

Vote to give our police officers and firefighters a fair system to settle disputes, they deserve it for putting their lives on the line for us every day.

We ask for your YES vote on Measure B (Binding Interest Arbitration). Give our dedicated police officers and firefighters a fair system to settle disputes.

__________________________________________

Measure B is about providing a fair decision making process for police and firefighters.

Over 3,000 Santa Clara citizens signed the petitions to place arbitration on the ballot to provide for a fair decision making process to settle disputes for police officers and firefighters.

The City Council voted to place the arbitration measure on the ballot because they thought the citizens should exercise their democratic right to decide.

The opponents say that arbitration will cause reduction in City services.

***The truth is that no California City that uses arbitration has reduced or eliminated services due to arbitration.

The opponents say elected officials will lose “local control.”

***The truth is that the City Council and Manager retain control by appointing the City’s representative on the arbitration panel.

The opponents say that the arbitrator’s decision can be a financial burden on the city.

***The truth is that the arbitrator must consider the financial condition of the City and the City’s ability to meet the cost of the arbitration award.

Arbitration is something that you would want for yourself because it’s fair. If you had a disagreement with another person over an issue, would you want that person to make the final decision every time? Of course not! You would rather have a knowledgeable, neutral and impartial arbitrator decide who had the fairest argument.

Join State Senator Elaine Alquist, Assemblywoman Sally Lieber, Assemblywoman Rebecca Cohn, Third District Supervisor Jim Beall, Councilman Pat Kolstad, retired Assistant Fire Chief Ted Rose and thousands of Santa Clarans who support binding interest arbitration for our public safety officers.

Please vote YES on Measure B. Yes for a fair decision making process for your firefighters and police officers.
 

Yes on Measure B Supporters:

Elaine Alquist, State Senator

Pat Kolstad, Santa Clara City Council and SCPD (ret.)

Robert Sharps - Chief, Santa Clara Fire Department (ret.)

Edward C. Rose, Assistant Fire Chief SCFD, (ret.)

Lisa Gillmor, Business woman and Santa Clara City Council (ret.)

Pat Nikolai, President, Santa Clara Police Officers Association

Gary Niblock, President, Santa Clara City Firefighters IAFF 1171

Click here to download the argument in favor of Measure B

Click here to download the rebuttal to the argument against Measure B

Binding Interest Arbitration (BIA) Fact Sheet
 

* FAIR: BIA will bring fairness for firefighters and police during negotiations. If contract talks are deadlocked, and all other remedies are exhausted, impartial arbitration would be available as a means to resolve disputed issues. Arbitration does not eliminate negotiations, mediation, or any other forms of issue resolution agreed upon by the City’s negotiators or the police and fire negotiators.

Arbitration is a fair and impartial process to resolve disputes for police officers and firefighters who do not have the right to strike and who do not want the right to strike but who believe they deserve a level playing field and a fairer way to settle unresolved disputes.

* OPEN: Matters that go to an arbitration hearing are open to the public.

* IMPARTIAL: Arbitration will establish a neutral three-member Board of Arbitrators. The make up of the board will consist of a Representative selected by the City Council, a Representative selected by the fire fighters or police officers and an Arbitrator mutually selected by both parties. The arbitrators will make a decision only on the last, best and final offer for each issue submitted by each side.

* MAINTAIN LOCAL CONTROL: Arbitration allows for full participation for the elected officials of the city; from the start of the negotiations, to selection of their Representative on the Arbitration Board and joint selection of a third Arbitrator. The arbitrators themselves are very knowledgeable about municipal issues, especially finance and budgets, and do not make decisions from positions of ignorance or bias.

* LAST RESORT: Arbitration will only be used as a last resort when all other methods of reaching agreement, including an impasse hearing, have been tried and have not successfully delivered an agreement.

* NOT A GIVE-AWAY: Arbitration will not be a financial burden on the City, The fact is, the arbitrator must take into consideration the financial condition of the city and its ability to meet the cost of any settlement.

* MAINTAIN SERVICE LEVEL: Arbitration will not cause any reductions or cuts in services. No city or state that has BIA has ever cut or reduced a service or program as a result of an arbitration award.

* NO NEW TAXES: Arbitration will not increase taxes; in fact there could be a tax savings. Drawn out and costly labor negotiations would be avoided.

* COST SHARING: The cost of an arbitration hearing is shared equally between the parties who are involved.

* PROVEN: Of the 105 charter cities in California, 24 (nearly 25%) use IA: Alameda; Anaheim; Gilroy; Hayward; Modesto; Monterey; Napa; Oakland; Oroville; Palo Alto; Petaluma; Redwood City; Sacramento City; Sacramento County; Salinas; San Francisco; San Jose; San Leandro; San Luis Obispo; Santa Cruz; Santa Rosa; Stockton; Vallejo and Watsonville. There are 26 states that use IA.

* NEVER REPEALED, IT WORKS!: Once approved by the voters impartial arbitration has never been repealed because it works.

* CONCLUSION: On May 9 the City Council voted to place our initiative allowing binding interest arbitration on the ballot for November. The Council agreed with the firefighters and police officers that this issue has merit and that the voters should decide. In addition, we will pay for the cost of the election so that there will be no financial cost to the voters to decide this issue.

Please vote YES on Measure B. Yes for a fair decision making process for your firefighters and police officers.

* For more information call: 831-325-1932 or 408-489-0476 or email
g-niblock@charter.net

To download a copy of this fact sheet click here.
 

        Schedule of Events

Art and Wine Festival Huge Success! - The Art and Wine Festival was a fantastic success! We handed out hundreds of Yes On B flyers and helium balloons and took the opportunity to tell many, many Santa Clara voters about the benefits of Measure B.

Precinct Walking - Precinct walking is in high gear and we are on target to reach our goal! If you haven't walked yet, please sign-up for walking precincts by clicking on your Shift Vice Presidents email below.

Thanks to all of you who are signing up to adopt a precinct and walk precincts. We need everyone to help out. In addition to taking our message to Santa Clara voters by walking our neighborhoods, we are placing highly visible lawn signs all over town! Keep up the good work, and the good fight to secure a fair decision making process.

Thanks also to our members who are Santa Clara residents. Every member is displaying a lawn sign in their yard and has distributed signs to their friends, neighbors and family.

A-Shift Vice President - B-Shift Vice President - C-Shift Vice President - Fire Prevention Vice President

Download "Yes on Measure B" Flyer 1 and Flyer 2

__________________________________________________________

Endorsements (Partial List)

  * Community

          Elaine Alquist - California State Senator

          Sally Lieber - California State Assembly (Support letter)

          Rebecca Cohn - California State Assembly (Support letter)

          Jim Beall - Santa Clara County 4th District Supervisor (Support letter)

          Rod Diridon Sr. - County Supervisor (Ret.)

          Robert Sharps - Chief, Santa Clara Fire Department (ret.)

            Edward C. Rose - SCFD Assistant Fire Chief (ret.)

          Phaedra Ellis-Lampkins - Executive Officer, South Bay Labor Council

          Phillip Bump - Political Director, South Bay Labor Council

          Lisa M. Gillmor - Santa Clara City Council (Ret.) (Support letter)

          Gillmor & Associates - Santa Clara Realtors

          Eddie Souza - Former Mayor (Support letter)

          George Cintas Sr. - Betty Cintas - Pat Diani - Elena Marconi and

          thousands more Santa Clarans who believe in fairness!

  * Organizations

     -Santa Clara County Council of Professional Firefighters (Support letter)

        -Santa Clara County Firefighters - IAFF Local 1165

Representing Campbell, Cupertino, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Los Gatos, Monte Soreno, Morgan Hill, and Saratoga

        -San Jose Firefighters - Local 230

        -Gilroy Firefighters - Local 2805

        -Mt. View Firefighters - Local 1965 (Support letter)

        -Palo Alto Firefighters - Local 1319

        -Sunnyvale Public Safety Officers Association

        -Milpitas Firefighters - Local 1699

        -CDF Firefighters - Local 2881

     -California Professional Firefighters (CPF) (Support letter)

     -International Association of Firefighters (IAFF)

     -South Bay Labor Council -AFL-CIO

     -PORAC

     -Santa Clara Employees Association (Support letter)

     -Mission City Democratic Club

     -Santa Clara County Democratic Party

__________________________________________________________

Response to Editorial in Santa Clara Weekly re Impartial Arbitration

Brothers and Sisters,

Find here the response of the firefighters and police officers to Santa Clara Weekly's dis-information re impartial arbitration.

Click here to read the article.