FOP Members Vote No To City's Proposals

I work for the Corrections Department, we do not have a clause in our contract about lay-offs, so the word is that about 100 of my fellow FOP brothers or sisters will get laid off until the budget fixes itself, We have a problem at the jail, maybe everyone has heard about it, it is called over-crowding, how can we average over 1800 people in the jail or we oversee in Community Corrections and HIP and have 100 Officers laid off? this will make the jail a very unsafe place to work, make it harder for Officers to maintain Care Custody an Control of the inmate population in a safe enviorment. I find it hard to help out the Goverment when we at Corrections have gone without raises or a decent raise until this past contract for years because the Mayor's Office said it didnt have the money to do it, yet we are building an Arena, make a deal with the Cordish Company, and spend money to have hiking trails that circle the city. When I am digging through the new garbage cans, the black iron wrought ones with all the new lamp poles by them to find something to eat so I can make sure my family eats, I will be sure to think of you Mayor Abramson as you sit in your nice home, or eating for free when you go to a restaurant, we all know you get perks for being Mayor.

Just sent to the editorial page of the Courier-Journal.

Dorothy, I don?t think we are in Kansas anymore.

Someone in

Louisville has finally truthfully and objectively reported a story about something involving ?Our Hometown Mayor.? Kudos to Mark Hebert for being about the true journalist in a town full of plebs in the Official Jerry E. Abramson Cheerleading and Fan Club (also known as the Courier-Journal and most of the local television media).

In the mist of our city?s growing budget crisis, the Mayor had to stand in front of his constituents, with a straight face, and admit he has been sitting on a 63 million dollar ?Rainy Day Fund? the entire time. Even more incredulous was when the Mayor, still appearing to really, really mean it, said that it would be ?irresponsible? to use these funds to cover the budget shortfall.

Excuse me, Mr. Mayor, did you say ?irresponsible?? Which is more irresponsible ? using a ?Rainy Day Fund? for that which it is intended ? or laying off 200 employees?

All because you didn?t get to use this crisis as your excuse to take back the contractual commitments you made to Police and Firefighters that you hated making in the first place. Heaven help those poor souls working for City Government that either lack union protection or whose unions allowed you to bamboozle them into giving up their no lay off clauses (i.e. ? 3 day unpaid furloughs).

Even while sitting on 63 million dollars and simultaneously chastising Police, Fire and Metrosafe for not immediately and sheepishly giving up their raises, you still won?t rule out lay offs even if we gave you all of your concessions. Sorry Mr. Mayor, most of us city employees have already been on this ride with you and we know how you?d like it to end.

I will know I?m really in Oz if and when I see any mention of this little news tidbit in the Courier-Journal. Hey, I?ve got an idea! Print another editorial cartoon like the one in last Sunday?s paper. But this time, instead of a Police Officer blocking the path, you can have Mayor Abramson standing at the granite curbed entrance of the City Center Project, in front of a big pile of money with his hand out, blocking the path of 200 laid-off city employees as well as thousands of our citizens with unrepaired streets and unfulfilled City services.

Mr. Mayor, let go of the pride and ego. Use these funds as they were intended and replenish them when things come around in a year or so. You keep saying that the City has to live within its means just like our families. Well, the last time I ran short in my monthly household budget on November 15th, I didn?t kick two of my kids out until December 1st ? I either used my savings or I borrowed until I could pay it back.

Kelly Downard said it best ? and I paraphrase ? HEY - ITS RAINING!!!!!

J. Alan Bybee

P.O. Box 22774

Louisville,

KY

40252

I believe the Teamster vote will be a flat NO also. I was at the meeting and voted that all Teamsters should be in on the vote not just the few people at the meeting. It's not right to answer for everyone (especially when the issues we were voting on had not been heard by the people we represent). We are fairly sure of a unanimous No but at the time of the meeting it had not been discussed with all of the employees we represented.

However, LEMS representatives at the meeting couldn't't have been ruder and more sure that they had nothing to worry about since they are more important than any other agency in this town.