Cook County Public Defenders Association

The local filed a grievance today officially taking the county to task on the recent letters sent by Human Resources Bureau Chief Kim Gilmore.  The Union alleges that the letters violate at least three different provisions of the collective bargaining agreement and seeks to have the letters that were sent to members retracted, rescinded or repudiated.

While some who received the letters were in the bottom 20 of seniority, a couple were in the sixties.  Why this has occurred is unknown and the union is still trying to determine who received the letters from Mr. Gilmore. 

One thing is clear:  the budget battle continues and the hearing that is scheduled for tommorrow, February 22, 2007 will be decisive.  We need to make sure that we are present and hold all commissioners accountable.  We must ensure that the twelve commissioners who supported the Claypool amendment stay strong and hold on and we need to convince the other five to go in the right direction-and restore core services and frontline jobs.

The last grievance, filed when we received notice of the furloughs, was withdrawn after the County agreed to rescind the notice and the notion of a four or three day work week. 

We wont stop fighting because the battle is not over.

We are aware that some assistant public defenders have received layoff notices.  We have been aware since late last week that these notices were a possibility.  Here is what we can tell you at this time:  The Alternative Budget proposed by a broad coalition of Commissioners last week calls for the retention of all front-line assistant public defenders.  This is the budet plan we support as the best way to address the current county budget crisis.  When we first learned of possible layoff notices last week, we began communicating with the Commissioners who drafted and support the Alternative Budget.  It is the expressed desire of these Commissioners to retain all front-line assistant public defenders.  We continue to stay in communication with Commissioners this week as the budget process nears conclusion. While some layoffs are a real possibility as a result of this budget battle, receiving a layoff notice now does not necessarily mean that layoffs will occur.  The budget process in ongoing.  While layoff notices are distressing, the budget battle will continue, and we will contiue to seek support from Commissioners for a fully-staffed public defenders office.  This battle will continue, and none of us knows what the final budget will look like until after the Commissioners vote on the budget. For those assistant public defenders who received layoff notices, feel free to call Brendan Max or Bob Galhotra with any further questions.  We will post another update here when we have for information for publication.

Today, a broad coalition of County Commissioners presented an alternative budget for our Office that fully funds our mission, and restores all the jobs of assistant public defenders. This budget proposal rejects the 4-day work weeks, 10-day furloughs, salary reductions, and layoffs that were originally proposed by Todd Stroger. We are hopeful that when Commissioners finally vote on these proposals, the new alternative budget will carry the day.Alternative Budget Summary

At a press conference at the County Building today, the Commissioners stood with representatives of AFSCME and our Office, and announced this alternative budget, which will restore the jobs of front-line employees who provide real services to the citizens of Cook County.

We will soon be planning any further action that we think will be helpful in getting this alternative budget passed, and we will let you know of the plan. In the meantime, you should call your commissioners, thank them for all the hard work on the alternative Public Defender budget, and let them know that we support their efforts.

While the fight for our jobs and our Office is far from over, this alternative budget is great news.

In an article entitled “Stroger finds $25 mil. as Union Sues,” Stroger announced that $8 million dollars will be restored to our budget to avoid the proposed 4-day work weeks and salary reductions.  This is great news.  Read this article at  http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/256198,cst-nws-county14.article. 

At this time, this budget restoration does not address the layoffs that are still proposed for our office.  We will communicate with Commissioners about this, and provide further news on this matter soon.

Today, lawyers for AFSCME filed a Complaint for Injunctive Relief in Cook County Chancery Court, seeking to stop the planned staffing and pay cuts to the Office of the Public Defender.  As you all are aware, Todd Stroger plans on laying off dozens of assistant public defenders, and has more recently notified us of his intent to impose 3-day and 4-day work weeks along with salary reductions.  The Stroger plan amounts to a 30% work force reduction and a 25% salary reduction in 2007.  Our lawsuit asserts that salaries and hours of employment are set by contract, the Collective Bargaining Agreement, and cannot be unilaterally changed by either party.  The lawsuit has been assigned to Judge Maki, and further information will be posted here as the litigation progresses. Complaint 

Also today, the Executive Board published an open letter to the legal community in the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin. Open Letter  The Executive Board is calling on the legal community to take notice of the crisis in this Office, and support our cause to maintain this County’s commitment to the requirements of the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution.  Should you have any ideas about further action to garner support, contact Brendan Max or Bob Galhotra.

Finally, we continue to work with County Commissioners to try to inform them of the devastating effects of the proposed budget cuts, and work to get assistant public defender jobs put back in the budget.  Members of the Executive Board met face-to-face with Commissioners in the last 2 weeks, and representatives of AFSCME Council 31 have been conducting ongoing meetings as well.  As the budget amendment period gets underway, we will keep you informed of amendments that affect our Office.

The Union was informed by Management that they have finally obtained accredited provider status from the MCLE Board. This means that the Office is qualified to provide training that will count towards our 20-hour requirement. While we have attempted to obtain a promise from Management that the Office will use its accreditation to provide enough free in-house MCLE so that APDs do not have to pay for MCLE elsewhere, the Office has refused to make this promise to APDs. We are nonetheless hopeful that the Office will begin to provide such training soon. All attorneys should be aware of the new MCLE requirement, and should look for training opportunities posted in the Office.

Below are some Frequently Asked Questions regarding the current budget crisis and its effects on the Public Defender Office:

Q: Does the Public Defender budget proposal currently include 4-day work weeks and 10-day furloughs?
A: Yes.

Q: Has the Union been provided with an official layoff list yet?
A: No. We demanded one from Management, and they claim not to have one at this time.

Q: Will APDs designated for layoff have meetings with AFSCME?
A: Yes. AFSCME will arrange meetings with the Human Resource Division of Cook County to go over any possible job openings for which APDs have priority.

Q: What is a APD start date for purposes of layoffs?
A: The day you started as an assistant public defender with the office, minus any unpaid leave.

Q: Can supervisors re-enter the bargaining unit?
A: See the applicable CBA provision.

Q: Does an APD on layoff have to continue paying union dues in order to preserve callback rights?
A: No.

Q: Are there any AFSCME programs to assist APDs who are laid off?
A: No. Anyone designated for layoff will be eligible for unemployment compensation as well as COBRA medical insurance benefits. If you have further questions about the effects of layoff on life insurance, pensions, and other benefits, please call AFSCME Council 31 at (312)641-6060.

Q: If an APD is in transition from Grade I to Grade II at the time of the layoff, at which level will they receive unemployment benefits?
A: Unemployment benefits are calculated on an employee’s final paycheck before layoff, so the Grade I rate will apply unless you have already begun to receive Grade II pay. Also, if you are recalled from layoff and had not received Grade II pay yet, you will be re-instated at Grade I pay.

In addition, please familiarize yourself with our CBA, which can be downloaded from the “Stewards and Grievances” page of this website.

In light of the letter from Todd Stroger’s office last week notifying us of layoffs, 4-day work weeks, and furloughs, the Public Defender Union Executive Board met today (February 5). While our efforts to change the direction of the county budget have been ongoing (including appearances at the most recent public hearings), we planned further action today. That action includes, but is not limited to, the following:

1. Litigating a grievance asserting that the Notice from Stroger’s office regarding 4-day work weeks and furloughs is a violation of our Collective Bargaining Agreement with the County. A hearing is scheduled on this grievance tomorrow (February 6) at the County Building. Members of the Executive Board will be present for this hearing. Should it be necessary, we will seek expedited arbitration on this matter. Download Grievance Form Here

2. Members of the Executive Board have been conducting ongoing face-to-face meetings recently with County Commissioners to specifically discuss the effects that layoffs/4-day work weeks/furloughs would have on the Public Defender Office. These meetings continue this week.

3. We are currently researching the legal effects of increasing our caseloads (through layoffs) while simultaneously reducing our available work hours (through 4-day work weeks and furloughs). This excessive caseload situation is troubling, and we will have a plan to address this in short order.

4. We are attempting to rally the legal community to get involved in our cause. Besides ongoing consultation with numerous legal organizations, we will be placing a call to action in at least one local publication seeking support. Stay tuned for further developments here.

5. We ask that all assistant public defenders approach the judges we appear before and inform them of the proposed cuts to our office, and the likely effects the cuts will have in the courtroom. Those effects include unavailability for 5-day trials, reduced staffing during all court time, higher caseloads leading to longer disposition times, less support staff and investigators leading to longer disposition times, and other effects.

6. We ask that all assistant public defenders continue to get the message out to County Commissioners and others about the disastrous effects the cuts will have on our Office and the criminal justice system. You can download an updated version of our talking points here. Download Talking Points Here.

In addition to this formal plan for action, the Executive Board has been busy fighting the Stroger budget plan in other ways: we have pressed our case with Management in a Labor-Management meeting, responded in the media to the layoff/furlough notice, pressed our specific issues with AFSCME Council 31, organized speakers for the public hearings, cold-called County Commissioners, and updated this site with as much information as possible.

In the last week alone, our website was visited almost 1000 times by those of you interested in updated information. We will continue to provide information as we learn it.

Our Office received notice from President Todd Stroger that he plans on attempting to impose 4-day work weeks and 10-day furloughs.  The Notice states the following in pertinent part:

As you know, Cook County is facing a severe budget crisis.  I am writing to inform A.F.S.C.M.E. Local 3315 that Cook County will take the following actions that will effect members of A.F.S.C.M.E. Local 3315 employed in the Office of the Public Defender:
1.  Effective March 5, 2007, no work week of any assistant public defender will exceed four (4) days, and ten (10) of the workweeks during the period between March 5, 2007, and the end of 2007will not exceed three (3) days.
 2.  Effective March 5, 2007, the salary of each assistant public defender will be reduced proportionately to reflect the reduced workweeks.
  3.  Effective as of the close of business on March 16, 2007, Cook County will lay off thirty-six assistant public defenders.
 

What does this mean?  It means that Todd Stroger has notified us of his intent to impose forced dead time that amounts to a 24% reduction in pay, in addition to the layoffs.

What will be done about this?  We have a Collective Bargaining Agreement that sets our wages and benefits during the duration of the contract.  The notice from Todd Stroger evinces a clear intent to violate our CBA.  AFSCME has already contacted the law firm that handles our labor litigation, and we will be working with them to determine the best legal route to take here.  We have called a meeting of the Union Executive Board for Monday.  We will keep you abreast of any new developments, and we will post our plan to combat this by early next week.

What should you do?  Call Stroger or your commissioner and tell them about how the above cuts are going to bring the criminal justice system to a halt and how the taxpayers will pay more in the long run.

As you know, we all must complete Mandatory Continuing Legal Education now in order to maintain our law licenses.  The Illinois MCLE Board allows legal organizations in Illinois to apply for Accredited Provider status, so that in-house training can satisfy the MCLE requirements without attorneys having to pay out-of-pocket for outside training. Your Union Executive Board started pushing this Office months ago to obtain Accredited Provider status.  Now, even though 82 different legal organizations have obtained this Accredited Provider status, our Office still has not done so.  Therefore, our Office is far behind many others in preparing to meet the MCLE needs of their members. 

Here is a sample of other legal organizations that have taken this important step on behalf of their employees: Cook County State’s Attorney, Cook County Guardian Office, Illinois Attorney General, the Illinois Chapter of the Academy of Matrimonial Attorneys, The Bankruptcy Association of Southern Illinois, The Decalogue Society, The International Council of Shopping Centers, the Pro Bono Center for Disability and Elder Law, and the Society of Illinois Construction Attorneys.