Fire Fighters Local: Wichita engaged in anti-union practices

The Wichita Fire Fighters Local 135 says the city has engaged in anti-union practices, including denying or significantly delaying responding to the union’s grievances, harassing or trying to dissuade members from using union representation and discouraging the enrollment of new members.

The issue was brought before the City Council on Tuesday when Mark Woolbright, vice president of the International Association of Fire Fighters in Washington, D.C., spoke about the working relationship between the firefighters and city administration.

“We strongly believe from a legal standpoint that your firefighters’ contractual, statutorily protected rights as a bargaining unit are being violated,” said Woolbright, who called some of the incidents “blatant acts of intimidation.”

In response, City Manager Robert Layton said the city did not engage in anti-union conduct and that it “believes that it did not violate the labor agreement.” Layton said the allegations should be taken to the Kansas Public Employee Relations Board but that Local 135 has failed to do that.

Layton also laid out a series of actions that have been taken by the city to develop strong working relationships with firefighters, including monthly fire department labor and management meetings, monthly health and safety committee meetings, work with Wichita State University to create a new promotion process that included firefighters’ recommendations and using tools and training from the Kansas Leadership Center for teams to address safety and training.

However, Matt Schulte, president of Local 135, said those actions have not helped resolve the issues between the groups. The actions laid out by Layton have taken place, he said.

“But the other side of that is the grievances continue and the acts of violations of contracts continue. That’s the problem,” Schulte said.

Of the approximately 430 Wichita firefighters, about 375 are Local 135 members, Schulte said. More than 30 firefighters and their families attended the council meeting.

“The most disappointing thing is the continued violations of the contract. Not paying employees properly and not allowing people to join – which they have a God-given right to by the state – that’s just intolerable. That’s what the union is there for, to protect members’ rights, and that’s what we’re doing today,” Schulte said.

Woolbright, who represents more than 200 departments in four states, said the grievances in Wichita outnumber those of any other department he represents.

Mayor Carl Brewer said that issues with the union have been ongoing since he started on the council 13 years ago.

Local 135 had negotiations in 2013 for a contract that goes through 2016. It will not start its next round of contract negotiations until 2016, Schulte said. He hopes that negotiations for the grievances brought before the City Council will begin soon.

This story was originally published October 21, 2014 at 12:05 PM with the headline "Fire Fighters Local: Wichita engaged in anti-union practices."