The Union, Misappropriation, Personal Agendas and CorruptionWelcome to what will be a mega-part posting about the subjects in this title. There is much to disclose here and I want to be sure it's understood fully by the voting public so be patient and keep checking in. Please understand that alot of the information you recieve here can be found in public records or has been personally verified by me directly. I realize many will read this and wonder how does she know? Well, there really still are firefighters out there with integrity who don't like what the Union has done to their brotherhood and the divisive nature of it. Just because every other fire department in the state or country is in the AFL-CIO IAFF 2546 Union doesn't mean Manatee County has to be, and particularly Southern Manatee! Individualism still runs deep in this district.
Prior to September 11, firefighters were just firemen (or women as the case may be) who did their job for us in the backgrounds of our lives. These folks were taken for granted and expected to do their duty as a part of our lives in our world. With September 11th, we saw them in action in a way we never realized they worked but for them, it was an every day, every call event only in a much more concentrated and disastrous catastrophe. September 11th etched heroes into our minds with incredible pictures of regular men and women in firefighter gear going beyond human capacity to handle an inhuman crisis.
The Union
Southern Manatee came into existence via the merger of two small but fierce districts back in 1990. The merger was an emotional one but worth it in the long run as the two very powerful and spirited departments came together they proved very strong as one unit. The Board of Commissioners has managed the district wisely in an effort to make it one of the very best in the state. Over the years, there have been "takeovers" of the board by special interests groups who wished to look out for their own areas only but this has not lasted, thankfully. No district should ever be run by one "special interest" group, be it a group of people who get elected from one specific neighborhood and want very specific fire issues taken care of and focused on for them or a Union that is focused on it's own gain and controlling the firefighters needs and benefits which ultimately only benefits the Union and it's leadership. Special interests serve no one but the special interests. These are simply personal hidden agenda's being fed by personnel with egos that don't fit the department.
In every fire department there is rank and file along with seniority. Like the military this works fine. Everyone understands the system, and everyone knows how to earn their way to advance. But, then when someone comes along and begins to feed someone else the idea that they could advance themselves if they align themselves with their personal agenda and help them promote it, that's when the waters get muddy. Shortsighted thinking is simply destructive. The person being tempted by the potential advancement for themselves is only gaining in the immediate moment but destroying the integrity of the system.
In July 2009, the Union had a vote. By two (2) votes, it passed to become the firefighters Union, but only 2. There had been nine (9) firefighters on vacation who had said they would have voted no but weren't allowed absentee votes. So essentially, the firefighters are split on the Union, and this is not a 100% acceptance with the votes at 27 for to 25 against and 9 in absence. To make matters worst, the supervisors voted down the bargaining unit which must have infuriated the Union to be somewhat powerless. However, in my mind, to be feeding the firefighters a line about protecting their rights to their pension and their health benefits etc from the very board that GAVE them these things is ludicrous. It's akin to the children's story of the Emperor's Clothes! The firefighters already have great benefits, excellent pension, excellent health care and the Commissioners have not threatened to change anything. Why would the Union need to protect them from something that's not an issue? When their contract issues rise, then is really will be an issue and everyone will be involved. Perhaps after this the firefighters might vote the Union back out for dragging their department through the mud!
At a recent Board meeting, I watched the Union President, Merv Kennell, stand up and directly publicly accuse the board of not being transparent or communicating with the public, the Union and the firefighters about everything they want to know. Yet, I also know that Mr. Kennell was also very aware of the fact that a "gag order" had been handed down by the investigating authorities earlier in the day who are doing the investigation brought on by the Union and Pete Donchenko's accusations of misappropriation and wrongdoing's so that the Board was required to be quiet and not say anything in an effort not to jeopardize any of the investigation. So Mr. Kennell's little grandstand, was just that: a little grandstand of showboating for the unknowing public who think he's smart but don't understand how the Board's hands are tied. What a small mind and petty attitude Mr. Kennell displayed! What little respect for their positions. This is what the Union represents: lack of respect, showboating attitudes, making demands, and seeking control. Hardly how our district has run for the past 20 years. Hardly what we need to destroy the brotherhood our district enjoys.
Voting for Anderson, Solomon and Ranney keeps any Union control off the Board. This is critical to the district, please keep this in mind when you vote!
[ to be continued .. next post, Misappropriations]
The folowing comment was posted by Leigh Hollins, but edited by me to keep it clean.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I would like to say that I have been a firefighter in Manatee County since 1977 and I know all the people involved. SMFR has an overwhelming majority of members who are great people and great firefighters...most of them are my friends.
I would also like to say that I grew up in a union family and was a union rep for Local 2546, the same local the SMFR FFs belong to. I know about unions and they can be a very good thing....when they are needed and when they enhance the image of firefighters, not when they make us all look like a bunch of freakin' idiots.....and Donchenko opened that can.....for his personal gain.
Second, unlike the those who post on Bradenton.com under a nickname or assumed name (sound familiar?), I will put my name on my opinion. An anonymous opinion doesn't mean crap to me...only a coward would do that.
I am mainly commenting about the Bradenton Herald article from Oct 10th about Hennessy's pension.
Hopefully, everyone knows there is a management/ labor union struggle going on at Southern Manatee and this seems to be the reason for the mis-truths and speculation that is being reported.
Read the article..the pension board offered Chief Hennessy the option of a lump sum payout and the pension board unanimously approved the payment. Administrator Shamoun, who was at the pension meeting that granted Chief Hennessy his retirement money, is quoted as saying, “it is not like he (Hennessy) was paid out more money than he was due – payments are actuarially equivalent”. State pension officer Shoemaker asked for, and received, the information that she requested to make sure the payment was authorized and approved properly and was quoted as saying that the fund is actuarially sound.
The pension board did nothing wrong, Hennessy did nothing wrong.
Union official Kennell is quoted as saving, “if it was done right, we’d drop our objections” and “we don’t believe it’s ever occurred before”. Well Merv, it all checked out and you owe Hennessy an apology and you are right, it’s never occurred before…because Chief Hennessy is the first employee to retire from Southern Manatee with a full 25 year plus pension.
What’s the problem here? The problem is there is a disgruntled Battalion Chief with a personal agenda. You want a story, check out his record at, and away from, the department…..and away from the fire department….it’s all public record.
So, for all of you who read the article and think less of retired Chief Hennessy, please know that he is a man of high moral and ethical character who served the public of Manatee County admirably for 28 years. In 2001, Capt. Hennessy stepped forward…..when his department was in complete turmoil, to take the reins as fire chief.
In his eight years as chief, he and the board of fire commissioners, brought the department’s facilities up to standard, replacing outdated stations and building an administration center; he enhanced the pay and benefits of his firefighters and he obtained badly needed fire apparatus. From what he was told by the firefighters, the reason the firefighters joined the union (just as he was retiring) was because they wanted to “lock in” and secure the pay and benefits that he worked to obtain for them.
Chief Hennessy was also the “brainchild” of, and spearheaded, the Manatee County Emergency Services Memorial Fund, which was responsible for funding and building the beautiful Emergency Services Memorial in Rossi Park and whose perpetual fund provides financial relief to the families of Manatee County emergency personnel who are hurt or killed in the line of duty.
Make no mistake, those who chose to drag Chief Hennessy into a management/union struggle for their personal gain, including the Bradenton Herald and his accusers, should be thanking him for his service and you should all be ashamed. He deserves a public apology.
Leigh Hollins