NEMSA WINS IN OREGON

[hugopreuss]

Dear career medic,

For all the effort you put into this post, it seems sad that equal effort was not made to present the facts. To start off with, nearly every point you made is based on hearsay as you yourself point out so often.

So lets take this point-by-point.

1. While it is true that some had wanted to be in a single bargaining unit, the fact is that both BU’s had separate contracts, under different locals with the Teamsters and therefore were two legally defined separate bargaining units recognized by the federal government.

2. Aaron Pelican never was or is the vice-president of NEMSA. And again, while it is true that a TA was fashioned that the employees liked, it is up to the employee’s elected bargaining committee to tell the NEMSA attorney and reps how far they want to go and how far the employees are willing to push.

3. “The employees found out that NEMSA would be charging union dues”. Every union charges union dues and the amount is a set percentage of wages. I’m surprised and shocked to see that the employees were “shocked and surprised” that they would have to pay union dues. For you to throw wild numbers around like $26, $30 “or more” when no wage scale had been agreed upon is irresponsible.

4. Torren Colcord, president of NEMSA, holds a elected position at NEMSA and as such, has to be a member of a NEMSA bargaining unit. In his case, that would be AMR, since he has worked there as a medic for the past 15 years. Aaron Pelican used to work for AMR. It is not up to NEMSA to run AMR’s or Medics business.

5. NEMSA has never settled anything ”quickly, behind employees backs”. If that were even remotely true then why did NEMSA take Piners nearly to a strike (which was averted nine hours before it occurred because Piners gave in) and is about to take Medic in Solano to a strike. NEMSA cannot sign off on any contract unless the employees ratify the proposed contract.

6. The employees legally elected NEMSA. If the employees wish to rather be at the mercy of the employer, then NEMSA will “bow out gracefully”, after a legal election. Writing a few names on a sheet of paper, or stuffing homemade ballot boxes, both of which occurred, does not constitute a “legal election”. NEMSA has disclaimed interest, since the work force never really did take anything serious and instead believed their managers words over their elected shop stewards.

7. I bet your colleagues in Solano are surprised that you are trashing them, especially when they are light years ahead of Sacramento in understanding how things work. You bet ya that their willing to strike. Good for them. They’re not afraid of Rudy and Helen, as Sacramento appears to be. And if you think that a 16% offer is serious and not a slap in the face as the employees at Medic Solano feel, then you deserve working for burger flippin' wages in Sacramento.

8. See now, there you go again. Several local Napa TV stations and newspapers reported that a strike at Piners was averted at “the last hour”. No strike happened at Piners. Were they all lying? To assist in your research, “Google- NAPA ambulance strike” and read it yourself. If you couldn’t get a fact that important and simple to check up on as I did right, then what else are you not getting right?

9. Here’s another fact you got wrong. I started in ‘91 in the Sac market. There were four ambulance companies (Superior, Cordova, Metro, Foothill and in ’93, Baystar). Medic did not start ops in Sac until after the “97 Medtrans/AMR merger.

10. “Tim has disassociated himself”? Everyone knows that Tim got fired from NEMSA. And why do you make it sound like you defend him, when earlier you complained that he “did not show up for meetings, did not return phone calls, etc.

Sounds to me NEMSA had good reason to fire him.

11. “AMR employees are looking to get out from under NEMSA as well”. Nearly 800 AMR employees voted to ratify the new contract. Just over 300 did not. I hardly call that “slipping or struggling”. In fact, AMR crews in Sacramento tell me that their NEMSA rep does station/crew visits as early as 0500hrs and as late as 2200hrs and even answers the phone when on the crapper on a Sunday afternoon. I’ve never met union reps that put that many hours in.

12. What’s the thing with your Piners facts? Since Piners never went on strike, how could AMR run their calls? Good lord! Did Helen tell you that? And, MEDIC never was in the running to run Piners calls in the event of a strike. In fact, the whole Manfredi clan is known to just make stuff up.

13. Sadly, nothing you have mentioned here is definitive, complete, remotely accurate or true. The real question is, whom do you really work for??? You do sound like Jimmy, heir to the Medic empire.

P.S. Here's just one of the newspapares articles lifted off Google

Ambulance strike averted in Napa County, California

By Dan Judge

Vallejo Times Herald (California)

NAPA, Calif. — A last-ditch negotiating session successfully averted a strike by Piner's Napa Ambulance Service employees only hours before the Friday morning deadline.

Piner's and the National Emergency Medical Services Association union representing its 65 workers reached an agreement on a new contract late Thursday night.

By Friday morning it was business as usual at the ambulance service, which covers all of Napa County including American Canyon.

"Actually, we all have smiley faces this morning," said Piner's General Manager Stewart Slipiec. "That's different than what it's been for the last week."

Under the new agreement, Piner's paramedics, technicians and dispatchers will receive an 8 percent raise over the next two-and-a-half years.

The ambulance company also withdrew its proposal to search employees' vehicles if drug abuse is suspected.

Additionally, the contract addresses disputes over employee rotation. Supervisors will now rotate among the company's seven stations every three months and the rest of the employees will stay at one station for nine months and relocate to another station the final three months.

One major sticking point was union security and allowing NEMSA representatives unrestricted access to employees to counter anti-union efforts by management, said NEMSA president Torren Colcord.

"The main issue was making sure the employees got to keep their union," he said. "The employer was really holding to his guns and the (union) membership broke him by their unity and unwavering stance. This is really the emergency medical services workers' victory."

Jeremy Piner, operations manager for the ambulance service, declined to discuss specifics of the contract, but he seemed pleased with the outcome of negotiations as well.

"I think we came up with a pretty good deal for both sides," he said.

Some residents of American Canyon's mobile home parks, where Piner's Ambulances can be a literal lifeline for seniors, voiced relief that the strike failed to materialize.

"I'm sure a lot of people from my park will be happy to hear that," said Larry Asp, an Olympia MobiLodge of Napa resident. "They said we weren't in any danger but I'm glad it's all taken care of and everything is settled."

Las Casitas mobile home park resident Betty Gardner admitted the prospect of a strike was "a little frightening" and she was glad the dispute was over.

"I'm happy it's settled and I hope they were able to get what they wanted," she said of the employees.

Napa County officials had been bracing for a possible strike that would have seen Piner's operating with a reduced workforce and a contingency plan of seeking ambulance services from outside the county.