Members of the Franklin police union voted to switch union representation to the New England Police Benevolent Assocation and will begin negotiating a new contract soon.
“We’re happy to have them on board,” said Ron Scaccia, regional director for the NEPBA.
Union members held a secret ballot election on Nov. 13 to choose between the NEPBA, the Teamsters Local 633, which previously represented them, or no representation. The Public Employee Labor Relations Board sent a letter officially certifying the NEPBA as the bargaining agent on Nov. 27.
Following the election, union members set up an executive board and elected Patrol Officer David Gotthardt as president. Gotthardt did not return requests for comment. The NEPBA will work with the department during bargaining negotiations with the city. The union’s previous contract with the Teamsters expired in June 2011.
Unlike the Teamsters, the NEPBA exclusively represents law enforcement. It offers 24/7 legal representation. If an officer is injured, for example, a NEPBA attorney will meet them at the hospital and accompany them in meetings with the attorney general’s office or the state police, Scaccia said.
The union represents patrol officers, master patrol officers, detective patrol officers, youth services officers, full-time dispatchers, secretaries and clerk typists. Supervisors such as the chief, lieutenants and sergeants are not represented by the union.
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