Revolving door in state prisons: Teamsters oust PBA as union for correctional officers
by John Kennedy | November 17th, 2011Teamsters have ousted the Florida Police Benevolent Association as the union representing state correctional officers, ending almost four decades of dominance by the PBA.
In balloting for a bargaining unit, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters drew 4,097 votes to 3,015 for the PBA. The International Union of Police Associations (IUPA) was supported by 116 officers and another 154 called for no union, according to results made public Thursday by the state’s Public Employees Relations Commission.
The Teamsters union ran a intense campaign for the past six months. They raised questions among officers about the PBA’s representation at a time when pay freezes and legislative efforts to close prisons and privatize others in South Florida heightened anxiety among the state’s 20,000 correctional officers.
“I think the officers showed in this election that in tough times, they want a tough union to represent them,” said Leigh Strope, a Teamsters’ spokeswoman.
Tags: International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Police Benevolent Association
November 17th, 2011 at 3:53 pm
Taking away local control. Centralization and distance from local problems.
November 17th, 2011 at 9:09 pm
Unlikely they will be less effective than PBA who most of the time is concerned only with collecting money. Did not have any idea of what happened to staff on the job and did not care. Only made an effort to get off their butts in the past 18 months when the Teamsters showed interest. PBA had a monopoly on collecting money for nothing for many years. They helped the occasional employee, but did nothing to prevent harassment/discrimination from occurring, as it still does. Fact: Prison security “cannot” go on strike. What can a union do with no leverage? The State reneged on the contract, why don’t the staff?
November 18th, 2011 at 10:59 am
The PBA contract was a total one-sided
sweetheart JOKE of a contract. I dealt with unions, & they all had better contracts. Only thing I got out of my 7 yrs. of dues was a tax deduction.