CAPE MAY — Four former mayors are urging the governing
body to get a professional labor mediator to solve the dispute over
compensatory time at the Police Department.
Jerry Gaffney, one of the former mayors, read a letter
also signed by Robert Elwell, Jerry Inderwies Sr. and Tom Phelan at Tuesday
night’s City Council meeting.
“What started out as a simple labor dispute over comp
time has mushroomed into something much larger where we now have the
Prosecutor’s Office serving as a monitor between our city officials and the
Police Department, and all the parties ‘lawyering’ up at what will surely be
taxpayers’ expense,” Gaffney said.
The four mayors said the case is hurting the city’s image
as a tourist destination and needs to be resolved so the city can move on with
more important business as the summer season approaches.
Compensatory time taken by police Lt. Chuck Lear, first
reported last summer by several officers and a retired police sergeant, has
spawned several investigations and lawsuits. Such time is against city policy,
the police contract and state law unless the city adopts an ordinance to allow
it. The case also led to the demotion of Robert Sheehan from police chief to
captain.
It remains unclear if it is too late for mediation over
what at its roots could be termed a contract dispute.
“I think we’ve gone too far for this,” said Councilman
Shaine Meier. “We’ll go to the lawyers and find out who is at fault.”
Meier has proposed installing a digital time clock to
track employee hours.
“At this point, the city is on an honor system to sign
you in and out, which is ridiculous,” Meier said.
The mayors, who all live locally, propose a mediator meet
with Sheehan, Mayor Ed Mahaney, City Manager Bruce MacLeod, along with a
representative from council and the county Prosecutor’s Office to find a
mutually agreeable solution.
“The four of us have not always agreed on all issues, but
we are firmly in sync with our thinking on this proposal,” states the letter.
Source: Press
of Atlantic City
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