Angry Officers Apparently Voting Down Contract; Job Action Urged

Denouncing the city’s contract offer as a bum deal, angry Los Angeles police officers on Thursday appeared to vote down the pact amid calls for stronger job actions to pressure city leaders, including a mass sickout during the upcoming World Cup.

Although the final tally will not be released until today, sentiment against the proposed contract was so strong during three ratification sessions that the Police Protective League leaders who negotiated the deal began distancing themselves from it.

Cliff Ruff, a member of the union’s board of directors, told officers gathered at one voting location that they should be prepared to “go all the way” if they vote the contract down. He suggested a mass sickout during the upcoming World Cup soccer tournament that would force Gov. Pete Wilson to call in the National Guard.

The suggestion prompted wild applause.

The voting sessions were raucous affairs, full of harsh words for Mayor Richard Riordan and Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky, both of whom were active in the negotiations. Members also grilled their elected officers about how hard they fought for the membership.

“Geez, they are venting their anger, that’s for sure,” union President Danny Staggs said as he emerged from voting at the Sports Arena.

Union spokesman Geoffrey Garfield said it appeared the contract was being soundly defeated. “It’s gone,” he said. “Sinking fast--like somebody put a rock in a bowl of pudding.”

A rejection of the city’s offer would send the parties back to the negotiating table in a labor dispute that has dragged on for two years.

The union leadership fears that the city may declare an impasse and unilaterally impose a contract. But officers argued that they still had some leverage with the approach of the World Cup, which is expected to draw thousands of visitors to the area and require intense security.

“I hope that cooler heads will prevail, but if they don’t, they don’t,” Yaroslavsky said. “I don’t know what the rank-and-file expects.”

The union staged a “blue flu” last fall, but it was called short by a judge who ruled that it was illegal. Instead, the union resorted to a controversial billboard campaign that depicted a carjacking in progress.

Officers said they are falling further and further behind their colleagues in neighboring cities. A study prepared by the city shows the salaries of rookie LAPD officers behind their counterparts’ in San Diego, Anaheim, Long Beach, Glendale and Santa Ana. LAPD officers also lag behind sheriff’s deputies in Los Angeles and Orange counties.

“Two years without a contract and now they’re offering us crumbs,” Newton Division Sgt. Frank Mena said after voting against the deal.

“We have to support our families,” added Pacific Division Officer Pete Llanes, who was carrying his 4-year-old son. “That’s what this contract is all about. I consider their offer an insult.”

Even before the ballots were counted, the union leadership was planning to huddle this weekend.

The contract calls for a 3% cost-of-living increase for each of the next two years but no retroactive pay for the past two years. It also includes controversial changes in benefits and work rules.

Before the voting began Thursday morning, Officer Leslie Higgins sneaked his motorcycle into headquarters, rolled it into the retirement office and retired on the spot.

What Higgins meant as a prank on his last day on the job became a rallying cry for the frustrated ranks.

A superior had insisted that Higgins turn in all his equipment in the Parker Center retirement office, so Higgins took him at his word.

Before he headed out the door, the 20-year veteran completed one last assignment--he cast a no vote on the contract proposal.