The Mythical Temporary Restraining Order

So, back when the County was preparing to vote for the new budget, a threat was issued from the DSABC that they were willing to file a temporary restraining order for injuctive relief regarding our staffing issue.  Our CBA dictates that basically, neither the County nor the Sheriff can alter our work environment drastically without the approval of the union.  Welllllll, today I found out directly from Captain Thomas (soon to be Chief Thomas, so congratulations Captain) who was on the phone with Capt. Long of DSABC, in my presence, that CLEAT is apparently unsure as to whether or not the TRO should be filed.  What. The. Hell?

This issue should be a complete no brainer.  This is what CLEAT is supposed to do.  Instead of standing up for the labor issue and protecting the employees of the Sheriff's Office, they are going to meet with some representatives of the DSABC to determine who, or if anyone, is going to file this TRO.  This TRO needs to happen.  Now.  Its obvious the County is going to fight us tooth and nail regarding the CBA and as usual, they are going to try and screw us.  This should not happen and the DSABC and CLEAT should be fighting over who gets to file the TRO not whether it should be filed at all.  Was this just an idle threat in the face of the Commissioners?  I sure hope not.  They will never take us seriously again if it was.

If CLEAT stands aside and lets this fall to DSABC to file on the outside (and how long is that going to take?) then I would suggest that the DSABC re-evaluate its professional relationship with CLEAT.  When the labor issues become complex and serious, such as they are now, we need help and representation, not waffling and abdication.

UPDATE: I had emailed DSABC President Janssen regarding the restraining order and asking about the lawsuits and what progress was being made.  Apparently, the union needs to file a grievance through proper channels prior to asking for a restraining order and are in the process of doing that.  Im not sure if we have actual labor representatives pursuing this issue or if its elected DSABC personnel, but perhaps they can focus on using a labor attorney or other qualified representative to handle this issue so that we are not taking two steps forward and one step back, which is what it looks like.