WEEK OF APRIL 4, 2024
VOLUME 23 | ISSUE 5
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Commissioners oppose unionization effort underway at Douglas County Sheriff’s Office
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BY ELLIS ARNOLD EARNOLD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Douglas County’s elected leaders say they stand with Sheriff Darren Weekly in opposition to an effort to unionize the sheriff ’s office, arguing the move would hamper the interests of employees and the public. “We believe a union would not only interfere with the effective delivery of the exceptional law enforcement you’ve come to expect from your sheriff ’s office but also not be in the best interests of the employees who work there,” County Commissioner Lora Thomas said in a March 25 video message with her fellow commissioners. Union representation of the sheriff ’s office could enable employees to negotiate salaries, benefits and other aspects of their jobs through collective bargaining, a possibility the sheriff ’s office leadership opposes. In the video statement, County Commissioner Abe Laydon said the union effort now has enough signatures to force an election to determine whether deputies want to be represented by the Fraternal Order of Police. That organization is “by far the largest professional police organization in both Colorado and the United States,” according to the Colorado FOP website. “In Douglas County, we oppose the notion that outsiders would think they know what’s best for our community, our sheriff ’s office, employees and your safety,” Laydon said. The Douglas County News-Press did not immediately hear back from the Colorado FOP for comSEE OPPOSE, P8
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Douglas County Sheriff Darren Weekly speaks at a Feb. 29 news conference to call attention to scams targeting older adults. He spoke alongside area police chiefs at the PHOTO BY ELLIS ARNOLD sheriff’s office in the Castle Rock area.
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