To prevent severe cuts to city services,
unions representing city employees call on the City Council to
adopt a budget that assumes the success of the Coliseum
sale.
OAKLAND,
Calif., July 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- As the City
Council prepares to make its final vote on the budget, unions
representing Oakland city
employees assert their firm stance that anticipated revenue from
the Coliseum sale must be used to protect public services. The
coalition of unions includes 4,000 city workers in IFPTE Local 21,
SEIU 1021, IBEW 1245, and Oakland Firefighters Local 55.
"Brownouts for fire engines delay emergency response and
endanger lives, especially now during fire season," said
Zac Unger, firefighter and
IAFF 55 President. "We urge the Council to adopt the Option 1
budget proposal."
"Oakland's public safety hangs
in the balance," said Julian
Ware, IFPTE Local 21 Oakland Vice President. "If Council
turns its back on the Coliseum sale, we're staring down
$63 million in cuts to Police, Fire,
and Violence Prevention."
"The cuts we face if Council doesn't use the Coliseum sale mean
fewer officers and years of fire engine brownouts," said
Antoinette Blue, Police
Communications Dispatcher and SEIU 1021 Chapter President for the
City of Oakland. "These are
potential emergencies waiting to happen."
"Protecting our essential services is never a risk. It's an
investment in the safety of our community," said Lead Electrician
Michael Patterson, IBEW Local
1245. "The Coliseum sale is on track, and when the money comes in
we will be relieved to have avoided all these cuts."
The proposed 'Option 1' budget assumes the success of the
Coliseum sale and provides a contingency plan in the event the City
does not receive funds from the sale of the Coliseum by
September 1, 2024. If City Council
doesn't adopt the 'Option 1' budget, the alternative 'Option 2'
budget would force over $63 million
in immediate and severe cuts, including:
- Freezing 68 sworn police officers, reducing the total to 610
after attrition
- Canceling 2 police academies
- Brownouts for 4 fire engine companies
Represented union members serve as firefighters, 911
dispatchers, illegal dumping crews, head start coordinators, and
librarians along with hundreds of other jobs that keep Oakland running every single day.
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SOURCE IFPTE Local 21