Audio clip
Jeff Eldridge
Local police and fire union leaders say they are "disheartened" by U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp's decision to pull his support of a resolution that would strengthen their ability to negotiate.
"To just blindside us with this stuff, to me that's not being a good steward," said Jeff Eldridge, president of the Chattanooga Firefighters Association, Local 820 of the International Association of Firefighters.
Rep. Wamp, R-Tenn., co-sponsored the bill in March 2009 along with more than 200 other representatives but removed his name from the list Tuesday.
The congressman's office responded with a news release issued that day, a portion of which read that after reviewing the resolution he determined that it "simply went too far without fully addressing this real issue affecting these men and women."
The "real issue" Rep. Wamp referred to is covered in an act he introduced the same day dubbed the "First Responder Protection Act."
That act would require employers to pay for judgments against first responders if such events arise during their official duties.
There is no mention of collective bargaining in the new act proposed by Rep. Wamp. And the congressman's office declined further comment to clarify where he stands on collective bargaining for public safety workers.
"(The First Responder Protection Act) completely has nothing to do with collective bargaining," Mr. Eldridge said. He said he understands first responders are covered from such litigation through employers insurance already, and if they perform life-saving acts off duty then Good Samaritan laws protect them, also.
Phil Grubb, a Chattanooga Police Department detective and president of the local chapter of the International Brotherhood of Police Officers, said collective bargaining would give public safety workers more stability.
"It will allow us to sit down at the table and negotiate a contract with the city on pay and benefits rather than fighting every year with the mayor," he said.
Rep. Wamp is running for governor in Tennessee.
Mr. Eldridge said the unions are waiting for the results of the primary elections in the governor's race before deciding whom to support, but Rep. Wamp's recent decision could play a factor.
"I think that's something we have to look at from a local level and a state level," he said of the upcoming election.
Todd South covers courts and the military for the Times Free Press. He has worked at the paper for three years and previously covered crime and safety in Southeast Tennessee and North Georgia. Todd’s hometown is Dodge City, Kan. He served five years in the U.S. Marine Corps and deployed to Iraq before returning to school for his journalism degree from the University of Georgia. Todd previously worked at the Anniston (Ala.) Star. Contact Todd ...
Who cares what a union official thinks? I support the police and firefighters but the union goons and their Mafia-type extortion tactics need to end. I don't know the details of Zach Wamp's decision but I trust his judgement more than any union official. It is unions that have stripped American workers of their ability to compete in a global market. The unions have used their union dues to fund anti-American, Radical Left politicians that are currently bringing America down. It won't matter long with pelosi, reid, and hussein in charge. America is facing a devastating crisis that must end with this fall's elections or we will see changes that we will not be able to overcome. Our kids face a bleak future, think the unions care about that? Take America Back in 2010!
Con Wamp concluded unions didn't pass his sniff test.
How many union members will vote in a Republican primary? Con Wamp's decision may cause a net inflow of voters into the Republican primary to vote against his betrayal.
I heartily recommend Gov. Haslam as your consensus candidate as Ron "Give 'em the Boot" Ramsey will walk all over you.
If you support Wamp's flip flop decision on this issue then you don't support your local firefighters and police officers. They are legally prohibited from striking unlike other American workers yet the City of Chattanooga refuses to sit down and negotiate issues with them. No wonder they stay short of manpower all the time.
In reference to the above comments. I CARE what a union official thinks and so do the hundreds of thousands of workers in this country who are UNION MEMBERS, AMERICAN WORKERS and Voters! CONGRESSMAN WAMP promised his support on HR 413 and now has changed his mind. What else will he promise and then change his mind about? We the public, and our elected officials need to support our Firefighters, Police Officers and Paramedics! They have earned the right, by protecting us 24/7, 365 days a year, to be able to sit down and negotiate for better wages and working conditions. Who do you think will be there for you when YOU really need help in an emergency? Congressman Wamp? or your local Fire,Police and EMS workers! I am very disappointed in Congressman Wamp for his decision to withdraw his support on HR 413 and I am sure I am not alone!!!
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