‘Blue Flu’ Strikes 197 of 205 Anaheim Officers : Labor: One-day job action to protest lack of a contract is hailed by police union as a show of solidarity. Management, with help from Sheriff’s Department and other cities, maintains routine patrols.

In a strong show of unity, almost 200 police officers Tuesday participated in a 24-hour “blue flu” job action, forcing the city to keep the peace with department brass and officers from surrounding cities.

Nearly 100% of the officers scheduled to work Tuesday called in sick in what union officials called a dramatic display of the rank and file’s frustration over their 18-month contract dispute with the city.

“Our members are sending a message to City Hall that they’re fed up,” Anaheim Police Assn. President Bruce Bottolfson said. “There is absolute frustration on the part of our police officers.”

In the face of the protest, Anaheim Police Chief Randall Gaston said the department was able to provide normal levels of service by patrolling the city with lieutenants, captains, civilian support staff and officers from Buena Park, Fullerton, Garden Grove, Orange and the Sheriff’s Department. The wages were paid by Anaheim.

“Right now, it’s business as usual,” Gaston said at a morning press conference after nearly the entire morning crew called in sick. Help from surrounding police departments started at 6 a.m.--when the first shift began calling in sick--and will continue until 6 a.m. today, when the protest was to end.

Throughout the city Tuesday squad cars maintained a visible presence. No major crimes were reported during the sickout, and the union, which had announced the job action last week, said officers had agreed to work if a crisis occurred.

Several did come to work to take part in ongoing investigations, including narcotics detectives who helped bust an apparent methamphetamine lab at a motel, said Gaston.

Nevertheless, City Manager James D. Ruth called the officers’ job action “unconscionable” and said it would have no impact on the labor dispute.

“It’s insulting and unprofessional,” Ruth said of the blue-flu tactic. “And it puts the citizens of Anaheim in jeopardy. . . . Here are guys who are supposed to be upholding the law breaking it.”

State courts have ruled that blue-flu job actions are illegal. The action also violates the officers’ contract and department policy.

The chief refused to discuss staffing levels or disclose how many officers participated, but he acknowledged that the job action “apparently has widespread support.”

Union officials reported that at least 197 out of about 205 officers scheduled to work the morning, afternoon and graveyard shifts called in sick.

The union did not ask probationary officers--those who are on their first year on the job--to call in sick, because it is easier to fire a probationary officer than a full-time officer.

Tuesday’s blue flu was the first of its kind in Anaheim and only the second in the county in at least 15 years. In 1988, Santa Ana officers participated in a sickout but came back to work within hours of the walkout when the city won a court injunction against the action.

Under department policy, Chief Gaston said officers may call in sick if they, or someone in their family, is ill. He said, however, that the department does not plan to investigate the officers’ sick-leave requests Tuesday. Ruth said the officers will receive sick pay.

Although Anaheim officials could have sought an injunction, they opted against it. Ruth, however, said the city will consider going to court “should they go out” again.

However, Bottolfson said a second blue flu is likely if the city does not change its contract offer.

The officers are seeking a 15% pay raise over the next three years. The city is offering a raise of 6.5% over the next two years, with a third-year raise of 3.5% to 5%, depending on the Consumer Price Index.

The city has offered other incentives including a one-time $750 lump sum if the officers accept the offer and the addition of Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday as a permanent holiday. Other incentives include a vacation buyback of up to 40 hours per payroll year, an increase in bilingual incentive pay from $50 to $60 a week, and an enhanced medical plan for retirees. City officials say their offer represents a $5.2-million package. They estimate that the union’s demands would cost the city $7.5 million.

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The Police Department budget is $51.5 million this year.

Bottolfson said the city’s offer falls far short of what the department’s 352 officers should be getting. He noted that Anaheim ranks 18th in a study of 20 Orange County cities in officers’ salaries. The salary range for Anaheim officers is $2,804 to $4,040 a month.

Furthermore, he said the department is also understaffed. Currently, there are 1.23 officers per 1,000 people. The national average, however, is nearly 2 officers per 1,000 people.

The union and city have been negotiating since the officers’ contract expired in July, 1992. But recently, the negotiations have become more heated. The officers have not received a raise since July, 1991.

Police officers have demonstrated at two City Council meetings and have picketed outside Disneyland to protest. The union is also planning to picket next week’s council meeting.

Bottolfson said the stalled negotiations have been extremely frustrating to the officers who see the city spending on other projects.

Instead of trying to get new arenas, professional sports franchises and Disney’s $3-billion expansion project, the city should be focusing on public safety issues, he said.

If the dispute continues, Bottolfson said the association would play an active role in the November City Council elections, when two council seats will be on the ballot.

“We’d like to think that people still listen to police officers and will listen when we say this guy, this guy and this guy will get the job done for us,” he said.

Although all five council members support increasing the officer’s pay and hiring more police, they have been unable to agree on how to raise the funds. At least two councilman criticized the union’s action.

“I’m disappointed,” said Councilman Bob D. Simpson, a former Anaheim fire chief. “I have a soft spot in my heart for public safety officers, but I don’t think this is the way to go about (getting a raise.) I think both sides lose when this happens.”

Mayor Tom Daly expressed his dismay, saying he is “disappointed that the bond” between the “police and the people . . . is eroding.”

“All of us appreciate the job the police do. . . . It’s discouraging to see this type of tactic used,” he said. “The city has had a generous offer on the table for many months. Considering the tough economy . . . a wage and benefit increase over 10% is reasonable and fair.”

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Ruth said the city is committed to public safety and is seeking to hire 22 new officers with the help of a federal grant. He said the city is also looking into other ways to fund the hiring of more officers.

But, Ruth said, the city’s present offer to the union is “very fair.” He said union officials fail to realize that Anaheim, like most cities in California, is in the grips of “a fiscal crisis.”

Ruth criticized the job action, saying it further hurt the city’s finances because the city must pay for having hired other officers to patrol the city. The cost was not immediately known, he said.

Officers said they agonized about calling a blue flu. The union even worked with the department’s management to minimize its impact by giving the chief time to work out a contingency plan. The officers also said they would report to work should a crisis occur in the city or if the officers were needed because of earthquake activity.

“The biggest risk for us is losing the public support,” Bottolfson said. “We’re concerned about that.”

Nonetheless, the officers said they have been more than patient with the city.

“I have been a cop in this town for 17 years, and I have never seen the guys more with the association,” said Detective Ken Gregory. “We have been 2 1/2 years without a pay raise. Do you ever see the Teamsters work three days after their contract expires? We have tried to negotiate. We don’t have to be the No. 1-paid department in the county, but we would like to be in the top 10, and it would be nice to be in the top five.”

Times correspondent Terry Spencer contributed to this report.