It took less than two years for the local teamster group in Wilmington to almost destroy a civil service due process law that Wilmington police officers and firefighters have enjoyed for several decades.

However, it is the way the teamsters group tried to kill due process that was most unusual, especially for any purported pro-labor group. Teamsters leaders agreed with representatives of the city attorney’s office to change the law that would render the civil service system useless and traveled with city leaders to Raleigh to convince state law makers that rank and file police officers wanted the changes.

Wilmington is one of only five municipalities in North Carolina that provides procedural due process rights to officers who face accusations that could lead to demotion, suspension or termination.

The changes proposed by the city attorney’s office and the teamsters if enacted:

1. Would remove the binding authority and decision of the commission

2. Would strip the authority of the commission by making the city manager the final decision maker on officer disciplinary issues; and

3. Would inappropriately restrict evidence before the commission and negate applicable and traditional legal rules of evidence and procedures

According to information that Wilmington City Attorney Tom Pollard presented in a
February 17, 2009, letter to the Wilmington City Council, “these changes do not affect the protections afforded to employees under the act.” That is obviously false.

According to PBA attorneys the proposed revisions would render the Civil Service Act “meaningless and toothless.”

On May 12, 2009, at the urging of PBA and the North Carolina Professional Firefighters Association (NCPFA), Senate Bill 430 was withdrawn and rewritten into a proposed committee substitute (PCS) that pared the original bill from six pages to three and removed all language that gutted due process protection. PCS to Senate Bill 430 passed the Senate State and Local Government Committee. In addition to striking the anti due process language, the bill now reflects language that clears up technical issues that actually needed changing. It is clear that it was the legitimate technical changes that were used as a smoke screen by the city attorney’s office to remove the due process provisions.

What is unclear, is how the local teamsters came to buy into this sham. While they have advised that lawyers had told them that it was okay, we have not been told who those lawyers are. Remarkably, the teamsters have advised that they still support the city’s original changes.

The corrected bill passed the full Senate on Wednesday May 13, 2009, and has been sent to the House. PBA and the firefighters will be working together to change a minor concern remaining in the bill, but in light of the teamsters continued support of the original bill, we will be watching the bill closely.

We are already lining up support in the House with the firefighters. We thank Senator Boseman and her staff for working with us to change the bill.