Leaders of guards' union refuse to sign over rights

Prison guards' union leaders refuse takeover by Teamsters
Leaders of guards' union refuse to sign over rights
By JAMES MERRIWEATHER
Dover Bureau reporter
03/01/2002

Elected leaders of the Delaware Correctional Officers Association have refused to sign over their collective bargaining duties to a Teamsters local.

Members of the association voted 405-19 last month to take on Teamsters Local 103 in Glen Burnie, Md., as their bargaining agent. The Feb. 19 vote reversed an earlier rejection of the plan by the association's executive board, which would be left with ceremonial duties only.

But board President Sgt. Robert Proctor, said he would not sign the two-year agreement, citing a "cease order" issued by the correctional officers' association's judicial committee.

"We got a letter from the judicial panel saying charges are being filed on us for violating members' rights," Proctor said.

"Nobody has refused to sign, but everything has to come to a cease until the committee does an investigation."

Supporters of the Teamsters movement said Thursday that the judicial committee, which resolves internal complaints by members, overstepped its constitutional bounds. They predicted a judge would eventually settle the dispute.

"That whole thing is illegal," said Sgt. Allan Deal of Sussex Correctional Institution, vice president of a temporary board organized by Teamsters supporters.

"The judicial committee is supposed to meet and discuss those issues before they decide what to do. They never met," he said.

The chairman of the judicial committee - Sgt. Clay Porter, one of the 19 officers who voted against the Teamsters arrangement - cited legal advice in refusing to respond to questions.

"We're told not to give any statement other than the whole situation is under investigation," said Porter, who is assigned to transportation duties at the Kent County Courthouse.

The complaints of violating members' rights that triggered the judicial committee's order are what prompted the movement toward the Teamsters last month.

Among other things, members said a demand to see the association's most recent audit had been ignored.

Under the two-year agreement, the Teamsters are supposed to collect about $250,000 a year from members' dues. The dispute puts the payment plan on hold, but Teamsters representatives pledged to live up to their obligations under the agreement.

"The board is setting themselves up for equity court, but we're in business in Delaware and we're moving ahead," said Thomas H. Ridgley, president of Local 103.

About 100 association members met with Ridgley and Teamsters field agents Thursday in Smyrna.

Bill Gosnell, a corrections officer at Sussex Correctional Institution and president of the pro-temp board, said even those who voted against the Teamsters were angered by the high-handedness represented by the judicial committee's order.

"As far as the union is concerned, everybody is really, really mad," he said.

Reach James Merriweather at 678-4273 or jmerriweather@delawareonline.com.