Over suspension of a shop steward
AFSCME #189 suspends labor-management work with Portland mayor
The City of Portland’s largest union
temporarily suspended all labor-man-
agement committee work with Mayor
Tom Potter after the Portland Police
Bureau placed an officer of AFSCME
Local 189 on administrative leave for
refusing to answer questions related to
union business.
The issue arose out of an Internal
Affairs investigation in the Police Bu-
reau. During that interrogation, desk
clerk Angela Oswalt, a vice president
and steward for Local 189, was threat-
ened with discipline and termination if
she didn’t answer questions related to
confidential discussions she had with
other union members.
Local 189 represents civilian em-
ployees at the Police Bureau.
Last year, Oswalt accused former
Police Chief Derrick Foxworth of
abuse of power and sexual misconduct,
which led to Foxworth’s demotion. Os-
walt, who had an ongoing affair with
the police chief, later filed a lawsuit
against the bureau that is still pending.
James Hester, a council representa-
tive for AFSCME Oregon Council 75,
said that two of the top brass at Internal
Affairs are close friends of Foxworth.
“I’ll let you draw your own conclu-
sions on that,” Hester told the NW La-
bor Press.
But this isn’t about what happened
between Foxworth and Oswalt.
“This is an absolute deliberate attack
to single out a steward and an officer of
this union,” he said. AFSCME main-
tains that Oswalt has no obligation to
answer questions about the union’s in-
ternal business or her private discus-
sions with other union members.
The union has filed an unfair labor
practice complaint against the City of
Portland and the Police Bureau.
According to Hester, Oswalt, the
union steward, was sought out by a col-
league for advice regarding a work-re-
lated matter. Oswalt consulted with the
union, and all agreed the employee
should file a complaint with Internal
Affairs.
“The next thing you know, Angela
is being called in by Internal Affairs”
wanting to know about her conversa-
tion with the co-worker and questions
about her personal life, Hester said.
“We told them that was privileged in-
formation.”
A second interview was held, at
which time Oswalt answered the ques-
tions about her personal life, but re-
fused to talk about her union business
despite threats of disciplinary action if
she refused.
The union filed the unfair labor
practice complaint after that interview.
It was shortly after the second inter-
view when Oswalt received a hand-de-
livered memo from Assistant Chief
Lynnae Berg informing her that she
was being investigated for three com-
plaints of improper conduct. One of the
complaints was for her conduct during
the IA interview, another was about her
handling of a citizen’s request for in-
formation, and another involved union-
related matters.
At a third Internal Affairs interview
on March 30, Hester said Oswalt an-
swered all the questions except those
involving union business. IA pressed
for answers, so the union ended the
conversation by leaving.
Oswalt was put on paid administra-
tive leave on April 2.
“I am incredibly shocked by what
they did,” Hester said.
On April 5, the union sent a letter to
Potter announcing suspension of all la-
bor-management committees under
Potter’s control. Those include the Po-
lice Bureau, Office of Neighborhood
Involvement, Office of Management &
Finance, the Planning Bureau and the
Revenue Bureau.
The letter to Potter said that the key
to the labor-management process was
that elected union officers and other
member leaders needed to be free from
threats and intimidation.
“We didn’t want to do this,” Hester
said. “But their actions are totally un-
acceptable. We can’t allow it to hap-
pen.”
AFSCME Local 350 member honored
by Milwaukie for giving lifesaving CPR
By DON LOVING
Inherently, Juli Howard knew
taking CPR classes was a good
thing.
“They offer them every year
here at work, and I’ve taken the
course three or four times,” said
Howard, a member of the Ameri-
can Federation of State, County
and Municipal Employees Local
350 in Clackamas County and
president of the City of Mil-
waukie sub-local. “But I don’t
know that I ever thought I’d use
the training, or if I’d even be
brave enough to try.”
She found out on St. Patrick’s
Day (March 17). While setting up
tables at a Parent-Teacher Organization-spon-
sored bingo night at her children’s elementary
school, another volunteer had a heart attack and
collapsed.
“I didn’t even think about it,” recalls
Howard. “I didn’t have time to be afraid or sec-
ond guess. I just ran to her aid. I checked for her
pulse and she didn’t have one, so I started CPR.
Another volunteer kneeled down beside me to
help. He gave the woman the rescue breaths
while I continued the chest compressions until
an EMT arrived.”
Later that night the woman’s heart was beat-
ing on its own, but she was put on a breathing
respirator and remained on the machine for two
days. She is still recovering, but should be fine.
“The emergency personnel said that if it had-
n’t been for the CPR that we performed, the
woman’s family would be making funeral
PAGE 12
NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
JULI HOWARD
arrangements,” said Howard, an administrative
specialist for the city. “That’s a day that I will
never forget, and it certainly proved a point.
Anyone who has the opportunity to take a CPR
class should do so, because you never know
whose mother, daughter, wife, husband, father,
sister or brother you could be saving. The City
of Milwaukie offers CPR classes to all employ-
ees that wish to take the class. I wasn’t able to
take the class this past year, but have taken it
every year previously and the training definitely
paid off.”
Howard was honored April 3 at the Mil-
waukie City Council meeting. Though a little
embarrassed by the publicity, Howard says it’s
well worth it if it inspires others to take CPR
classes.
(Don Loving is the director of communica-
tions for Oregon AFSCME Council 75.)
APRIL 20. 2007