Arbitration Filed Over Brown/Black Leather

Here we go again. Typical Hennepin County Sheriff's Office logic. Take a grievance settled years ago and decide to break their agreement and also violate the contract.

Of course I'm talking about the brown to black leather uniform switch.

The issue is simple. The Sheriff's Office, as is their right decided to make a uniform change from brown to black leather in 2007.  No one questioned the switch, just how it was to be paid for.

The contract states in Article 32, section 2:

Section 2. If the basic clothing provided by the EMPLOYER is changed in type, color or style by order of the EMPLOYER, the EMPLOYER will bear any replacement cost in excess of $65.00 per calendar year, the employee to be responsible for the first $65.00 of replacement cost.

When told the employees pay only the first $65 and they pay the rest they balked. We grieved it and they settled the grievance in 2007 by stating that employees who were in brown leather could remain in brown leather.

Suddenly in 2014 the few of us still in brown leather are an issue. This also calls into question the integrity of the Sheriff's Office and their willingness to break an agreement. But it's not the first time we've heard them simply say, "We're not interested in doing that anymore."

Well we just filed for arbitration. The Sheriff's Office will now spend thousands of tax payer dollars rather then follow the contract and spend a few hundred. Bravo!