The president of the Rutland City police union declared an impasse to contract negotiations on Feb. 3 after the Board of Aldermen failed to take up the union’s proposal at last week’s board meeting.
Union president Tim Rice said he had expected the contract to be ratified by the board at the meeting last Monday. But, he said that comments made by Alderman Henry Heck, who is also running for mayor, breached the confidentiality of negotiations and therefore impacted the ratification process.
Heck said he was not to blame for the state of negotiations and that the union contract proposal lacked support within the Board of Aldermen.
What did Heck say?
Heck’s comments made the night before took center stage at last week’s board meeting, garnering criticism by local police officials.
The rebuke was prompted by statements Heck made about the Rutland City Police Department during a ride-along with the Rutland City Patrol, a community watch group, that was streamed on Facebook Live.
During the meeting’s public comment period, Police Chief Brian Kilcullen said Heck spoke about confidential and ongoing negotiations, saying police officers “want to be paid for 60 hours and work 40 hours.”
Kilcullen said the claim was “not only inaccurate, but inappropriate and irresponsible” and would “erode trust in members of the police department.”
He added that Heck also said on the Facebook Live video that a member of the police force called Sgt. Whitehead was from out-of-state, wants the most expensive equipment, and has changed dynamics in the police department.
Kilcullen clarified that the police officer with the last name Whitehead serves as a commander, was born in Rutland, and is “focused on improving the work conditions of our members and is a dedicated, well-respected leader in the department.”
During public comments at the Board meeting, Adam Lucia, the president of the Police Benevolent Association, a Rutland City-based charity group, said Heck’s ride-along comments demonstrated a “blatant disregard for confidentiality” and raised “serious questions about (his) ability to responsibly handle sensitive matters that affect the wellbeing of our city.”
The Fraternal Order of the Police Lodge 410, Rutland City’s police union, made no statement in regards to Heck’s comment in the hopes of a “successful mediation session,” Rice said.
In a statement emailed to VTDigger that he read for a video posted to Facebook Thursday, Heck said that he regrets “if (his) words have caused any concern or disappointment among the police force or the community at large.”
“I have immense respect for the Rutland City police force and the critical role they play in maintaining the safety and security of our city,” Heck wrote. “My comments were never intended, nor did they breach any confidentiality agreements or compromise the integrity of the negotiation process.”
What happens next?
Rice said the police union filed for arbitration last week, which is a formal mediation process that eventually brings in a neutral third party to make a decision if the parties to the labor contract cannot come to an agreement.
“The union and city management have got to an agreement that we think is fair, equitable and within the city budget and responsible to the taxpayers,” said Rice. “We have an agreement with the city, but for some reason, the Board of Aldermen won’t ratify it.”
Rice also brought concerns about Heck’s comments affecting contract negotiations to the state last week, filing unfair labor practice charges with the Vermont Labor Relations Board and an ethics complaint with the State Ethics Commission.
Rice said he has heard back from the State Ethics Commission with guidance on how to pursue the local municipalities’ complaint process for Board of Aldermen members along with pursuing the complaints on the state level.
Rice said Heck’s “outlandish” comments violated the ground rules of executive sessions to not discuss negotiations with the public and not to negatively characterize parties to those negotiations. Rice said that those violations likely influenced the derailment of the union’s contract ratification.
Megan LaChance, the attorney representing Rutland city, said that while confidentiality breaches are not illegal, it undermines the purpose of executive sessions because “premature public knowledge” can impact contract negotiations before agreements can be reached.
“Vermont Department of Labor is very clear that both sides have to negotiate their contracts in good faith,” LaChance said. “If someone is disclosing these things or talking negatively about (parties) in the public, it can open us up to liability on that front.”
Heck pushes back
In another Facebook video posted Sunday night, Heck asserted that claims that he is responsible for halting the union negotiation process are false. Heck said that the Board discussed the proposed union contract devised after 10 months of negotiation last week and the Board ended the executive session without a motion to support.
“The blame being placed on me only deflects the fact (that) negotiating teams have not presented a contract that the Board as a whole can support,” Heck said.
Heck said in the video that he supports the police, but he also believes in “holding the department’s leadership to account when the city doesn’t see the public safety results that it deserves.”
Rice said that the police union members are frustrated after 10 months of negotiations and three attempts at contract ratification. He said union members have been without a contract since July and their previous contract was set before the COVID-19 pandemic, so their wages have not been adjusted for inflation.
Rice said that the Rutland City police union members are hopeful that a contract will be reached and they are willing to work with the city to find an agreement.
“We’re still also willing to work with Alderman Heck, if he is able to acknowledge his wrongs and try to make amends,” Rice said. “But so far to this point, Alderman Heck has not reached out to us.”
After the Rutland City police union notified its parent union, the National Fraternal Order of Police, about the incident, the umbrella group weighed in on Facebook regarding Heck’s comments, questioning whether Heck should maintain and continue to seek positions of authority in local government.
“Alderman Heck has no business being in a position of power and is a disgrace to their Board,” the post read. “If Heck had a shred of integrity which history shows he doesn’t, he would resign his position and immediately terminate his mayoral campaign.”
