Open letter from President Canterbury Across the country special interest groups are using Public Employees as scapegoats for the financial problems caused by politicians. There has been attack after attack on public safety in many areas: staffing, pensions, pay cuts, work furloughs, layoffs, and other cutbacks across the board. They are using these scare tactics with the intention of furthering their own agenda to gut public pensions and make Collective Bargaining illegal for Public Employees at every level.

As an example, politicians have historically underfunded our pension systems and now want to blame pubic employees for pension shortfalls. Public Employees are not the problem! Time and time again researchers have proven that Public Employees do not make more than their private sector counterparts. In fact, the Economic Policy Institute has put out recent studies showing that several states are giving their employees LESS overall compensation than similar employees in the private sector, including those in Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, and other states that have been villainizing their own employees.

Public Employees in Wisconsin, which has received a great deal of attention recently for the assault on employees' rights, face an annual compensation penalty of 11% compared to their private sector counterparts! Once you look at the radical legislation being proposed, you find that much of this legislation is not fiscally--based but punitive in nature. The National Fraternal Order of Police is doing everything we can to help our state and local lodges stand up to these attacks against Public Employees.

Our staff members have been meeting with state and local lodge leadership to provide guidance and support as we combat the storm of misinformation and smear tactics used by anti-labor forces across the country. While the current campaign against us is largely a state issue, it has national implications. The National Fraternal Order of Police is committed to assisting in every way possible to coordinate our efforts during this time of turmoil in our state legislatures. If your Lodge needs guidance please do not hesitate to contact the National Fraternal Order of Police.

Welcome to the new home of the Fraternal Order of Police in Grove,OK. Grand Lake Lodge 171