Democratic party chairmen from California, Ohio, Tennessee and Maine have urged their delegates to honor police boycott.
By The Associated Press With the start of the Democratic National Convention looming, the new head of the state’s labor mediation panel has called a Monday morning meeting of the board in hopes of resolving the contract dispute between the city and its police union.
Former district court Chief Justice Samuel Zoll said he wants to familiarize himself with the contract issues and get to know members of the committee and negotiators on both sides.
“My knowledge of the issue has been limited to newspaper accounts,” Zoll said. “I’ve got a lot of homework to do.”
Gov. Mitt Romney stepped into the bitter contract dispute on Thursday, when he abruptly appointed Zoll as chairman of the Joint Labor Management Committee, just hours after the panel failed to take immediate action to resolve the disagreement.
The police union has been working without a contract for more than two years, and its pickets have already disrupted construction at the convention site and stopped Sen. John Kerry from speaking to a recent gathering of U.S. mayors.
They’ve also promised to picket convention welcome parties on July 25 and urged delegates not to cross the lines. The Boston Globe reported that Democratic party chairmen from California, Ohio, Tennessee and Maine have urged their delegates to honor the boycott.
The city has offered the police union an 11.9 percent raise over four years, while the union, which has been without a contract for more than two years, wants about 17 percent.
The Joint Labor Management Committee on Thursday ordered an independent arbitrator to settle the contract dispute, but the acting committee head, Morris Horowitz, refused to expedite the process.
Romney responded by appointing Zoll to fill the committee’s vacant chairmanship. The Republican governor said public safety could be compromised if the contract dispute isn’t resolved before the July 26 start of the convention, which has been designated a national security event.
The city has pushed for expedited arbitration, which would lead to resolution before the convention. The union opposes allowing an independent third party to usurp the power of its members to vote on a contract.
Zoll said he would not make any decisions, including whether to expedite arbitration, until he knew more about the issues.
Meanwhile, heads of minority-owned and inner city businesses held a press conference on Friday to discuss the economic “ripple effect” if the welcome parties are canceled because delegates won’t cross the picket lines.
Numerous small businesses, such as event planners, florists and caterers, would absorb major losses instead of enjoying a rare chance to showcase their work, the business owners said.
"(The DNC) is an opportunity for businesses that have been invisible to be visible,” said Roosevelt St. Louis, owner of Nouvelle Creations catering, which is working parties for Tennessee and Wisconsin delegates.
“It would be an absolute shame if this continues,” St. Louis said. “I think they need to understand the larger scope, everybody needs to understand. This is not just about them.”