|
|
In the summer of 1962,
Trooper Howard Kelly of Newaygo Post #65 and five other troopers (who would
become known as the "Newaygo 6") visualized an association for the
troopers to address issues and concerns between the rank and file and State
Police Headquarters in East Lansing. A meeting was set up between Trooper
Kelly and State Police Commissioner Joseph Childs. Several issues and concerns
were discussed and at the conclusion of this meeting, the "nod"
was given to form an association. During the next two years word began to
spread across the state, and on July 22, 1964, the Michigan State Police Troopers
Association became a reality when the first Executive Board was sworn into
office by the Honorable Thomas M. Kavanaugh, Chief Justice of the Michigan
Supreme Court.
During the next five years, some of the concerns over salaries, benefits,
and work conditions facing state police troopers were also being faced by
other law enforcement officers in Michigan. In 1969, Public Act 312 was passed
by the Michigan legislature, which enabled police officers and firefighters
to collectively bargain with their employers and to have unresolved issues
taken to binding arbitration. While this was a landmark piece of legislation
for public safety in Michigan, the Act specifically excluded state police
troopers. This exclusion did not bode well with the MSPTA. It would take numerous
attempts over the next nine years for these same protections to be afforded
to troopers and sergeants.
In 1975, a public opinion poll conducted by the MSPTA showed that the Michigan State Police was the most respected law enforcement agency in the state. The MSPTA used these results in their argument with the Civil Service Commission to obtain pay raises and collective bargaining, only to have this information fall on deaf ears. After an unsuccessful try in this area, the MSPTA convinced Representative Ted Stopcznski to introduce House Joint Resolution X which would grant troopers and sergeants the same collective bargaining and arbitration rights that had been established under PA 312. Again, the time was not right, and HJR-X failed in its attempt to bring troopers and sergeant the same rights that were enjoyed by others in public safety.
1976 saw the MSPTA make three attempts to obtain collective bargaining through the legislature, all of which failed. In early 1977, the MSPTA announced that it would launch a petition drive aimed directly at Michigan's voters in order to obtain the 300,000 signatures needed to get a collective bargaining amendment placed onto the general election ballot for the 1978 state general elections.
State police troopers and sergeants took to the task of obtaining signatures through a statewide petition drive. MSPTA members and other volunteers such as family members, manned booths and collected signatures anywhere they could. In May of 1978, the MSPTA announced that it had collected sufficient signatures to place the collective bargaining amendment on the November ballot. This campaign drive and election process became the pivotal point in the Associations history, as Michigan voters overwhelmingly passed Proposal G, giving state police troopers and sergeants the constitutional right to collective bargaining and binding arbitration. Two years of bitter labor-management battles would follow, including legal action, before the MSPTA would enjoy its first contract in 1980.
Formed from an idea by
a small group of troopers, the MSPTA has grown to become a prominent frontrunner
in the area of police labor. Whether working with other police labor organizations
on the state or national level, or excelling in its commitment of representation
to its 1,500+ members, the MSPTA is respected and recognized as an experienced
leader in police labor relations.
