SAN ANTONIO – In a YouTube video posted Tuesday, San Antonio Police Officers Association President Michael Helle blasted City Manager Sheryl Sculley and her negotiating team over the bitter collective bargaining negotiations.
"The city manager and her team have done everything she possibly could to make us look like we're a bunch of greedy bastards trying to break the city of San Antonio," Helle says in the nearly five-minute video. "That's absolutely 100 percent false and a lie."
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The two sides are locked in heated negotiations to reach a new collective bargaining agreement. The current agreement expires Sept. 30. They've reached an impasse over how best to bring down the cost of health care benefits for active duty officers.
The city currently pays $12,000 per officer and $7,000 per civilian employees. Negotiators want officers to move on to the city's civilian health care plans, which would lower the annual cost of health care by $5,000 per officer.
The union has presented two proposals to the city that would allow them to structure its members' health care plan, similar to what the union does for its pension fund. The city rejected both proposals.
"It's been a total slap in the face when it comes to our membership because our proposals were legitimate and sound," Helle said. "We will not negotiate with a gun to our head and give up pay and benefits we have fought for 38 years to earn."
With the two sides very far apart, Helle said the union will change its strategy. Members voted to raise dues in order to fund a war chest to pay the cost of taking their message directly to the public through block walking, TV, radio and social media.
Sculley responded Thursday by releasing the following statement:
"We have presented the union an alternative that meets them halfway and continues to provide San Antonio police officers a higher level of healthcare than police officers in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth and Houston. If the union is unwilling to negotiate, I will recommend that the City Council exercise the provision in the Collective Bargaining Agreement that allows the City Council to make changes to healthcare benefits as part of the annual budget process. By law, the city budget must be balanced. We want the union to be a part of a constructive solution."
The video was posted the same day Ivy Taylor became San Antonio's new mayor. Shortly after being sworn in, Taylor said it was pivotal that both sides come back to the negotiating table.
Taylor repeated those sentiments in a statement to KSAT 12 Thursday, saying, "We respect and admire our police officers and recognize the need to provide appropriate compensation and benefits. We will balance that with the other needs of our citizens by maintaining public safety as a fixed percentage of our General Fund budget. Yesterday's meeting between the SAPOA and City health insurance experts was encouraging. I believe it can create a pathway for us to return to productive negotiating at the table. I encourage the SAPOA to return to the negotiating table."
Sculley will present her budget to the City Council on Aug. 7.
Helle concludes the video asking union members to stay together and prepare for what could be a very long process.
"This is the last stand at the Alamo," he said. "We will persevere. We will not compromise our principals and we will never surrender."