By Anthony Rice
In City of Lorain, the arbitrator found the Ohio City had just cause for the termination of an EMT based on his voluntarily resignation to avoid prosecution of “office theft.”
November 26, 2013 by
Arbitrator Refuses to Rescind a Voluntary Resignation after Finding the Employee Called in Sick to Work another Job
November 21, 2013 by
Illinois Police Officer Temporarily Dodges Bullet of Summary Judgment on ADEA Retaliation Claim – Court Provides Chance to Find Present More Evidence of Materiality and Causation
By Mitchel Wilson
In Bell v. City of Harvey, the district court suspended the City’s motion for summary judgment and granted Police Sergeant Andrew Bell more time to present evidence to substantiate his claims of five instances of retaliation for filing an age discrimination claim under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA).
November 15, 2013 by
Not Guilty Verdict Doesn’t Save Cuyahoga County Police Officer from Termination for Firing “Warning Shots” at Aggressive Ex-Boyfriend
By Anthony Rice
In Cuyahoga County Sheriff’s Office, the arbitrator found there was just cause for firing an off duty police officer who fired warning shots during a domestic dispute with her ex-boyfriend. Arbitrator Joseph D’Eletto rejected the claim of the Ohio Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association that her acquittal in Cleveland municipal court on an unlawful discharge charge barred Department discipline. The Arbitrator also sustained the Department charge that she had been untruthful when she described the precursor to the shots to be a “struggle” where no physical contact had actually occurred.
November 13, 2013 by
Ohio Arbitrator’s Creativity in Awarding “Involuntary Resignation” within Her Lawful Discretion
By Anthony Rice
Ohio Patrolmen’s Benevolent Ass’n v. City of Trenton, the Court of Appeals of Ohio upheld an arbitration award ordering the “involuntary resignation” of a police sergeant. The unusual case led to an unusual remedy which the union then unsuccessfully sought to have set aside in court. [Read more…]
November 8, 2013 by
City Wrongfully Discharged Officer for “Insubordination” for Refusing to Return to Work While Injured and Violated Just Cause When it failed to get a Second Opinion
By Anthony Rice
I
n City of Marengo, Arbitrator Stanley Kravit found the termination of a police officer to be without just cause when the City improperly ordered the officer to return to work while she was recovering from an injury. Kravit rejected the City’s claim that it was “insubordination” to refuse to return to work once the City’s hired physician found her fit when this finding was against the weight of the evidence that she was, in fact, unable to safely work. Kravitt ruled that the City violated the due process requirement—that all relevant evidence be fairly considered before discharge. [Read more…]
November 5, 2013 by
Deputy Loses Out on Overtime Opportunities When Union Fails to Show Past Practice
By Anthony Rice
In Carlton County, the Union failed to prove its claim of a past practice in the Minnesota Sheriff’s Department of pairing one of the four most senior field deputies, with one of the four least senior field deputies when shift assignments are made. The County therefore did not violate the CBA when it paired the Grievant, one of the four most senior deputies, as the junior deputy to another of the four most senior deputies.
October 17, 2013 by
Arbitrator Holds that after City Laid Off Officers, it Improperly Deducted Pro Rata Remainder of Equipment and Gun Allowance from Final Paycheck
By Mitchel Wilson
In City of Inkster, 131 LA 1179 (Brodsky, 2013), Arbitrator Deborah Brodsky concluded that the Michigan City violated the CBA when it deducted the pro rata remainder of equipment allowances paid to officers in a lump sum at the start of the year. The deduction was improper because the CBA only allows for the deduction when an officer is “terminated” but in this case, the officers were laid off and subject to return.
October 17, 2013 by
Arbitrator Prescribes Coverage: The City Cannot Unfairly Put The Onus On A Policewoman To Discover Her Medical Treatment Was Not Covered by Insurance Plan
By Anthony Rice
In City of Chicago, the arbitrator found that a police officer was misled into believing her medical insurance covered her therapy. The arbitrator held that it is fundamentally unfair to put the onus on the employee to understand an incorrectly labeled doctor’s referral slip, and then reach the conclusion her treatment is not cover without a pre-certification.
October 17, 2013 by
Arbitrator Overturns a Discharge for Excessive Force Based on Lack of “Clear and Convincing” Evidence but Imposes Suspension for Incomplete Use of Force Report
By Anthony Rice
In Southern Ohio Correctional Facility, the arbitrator relied on a correctional sergeant’s positive work history and the lack of conclusive evidence to determine termination was without just cause. But the arbitrator imposed a 5 day suspension concluding that the Sergeant’s use of force report, while not “intentionally dishonest,” reflected a failure of “cooperation” because it lacked “detail.” [Read more…]
August 20, 2013 by
Officer Terminated after Arrest for Illegal Sale of Firearm Survives Motion to Dismiss Due Process Claim
By David Worley
In Dooley v. City of Bridgeport, 34 IER Cases 1507 (S.D. Ill. 2013), the court denied motions to dismiss the due process claims of Officer Dooley, an Illinois police officer who was terminated following an arrest for illegally selling a firearm. The charge turned out to be baseless, and Dooley challenged his termination on due process grounds and a number of state statutes. The court found that as Dooley had a well defined property interest in his employment and no sufficient inquiry had indicated termination was actually proper, his claims could survive a motion to dismiss.
