New Haven Independent

Bell, who was moved out of the fire marshal’s office back to suppression duty after the city cut his position, wasn’t part of the suit. But his predicament lay at the center of debate among a panel of five justices at the Capitol. Charging its powers had been usurped when a court-appointed “special master” intercepted the union’s attempt to reinstate Bell at his old job, the city fire union fought for its bargaining powers, and Bell’s job, in state Supreme Court Wednesday. City lawyers joined the fire union in the appeal, but did not speak in court.

Origins of the debate date several years back, when a now-notorious captain’s test at the fire department drew heat. Representing a group of six African-Americans who claimed they were snubbed by city promotions, attorney W. Martyn Philpot, Jr., of New Haven took the city to court. In a 2005 ruling, Judge Lynda Munro of New Haven assigned a “special master” to oversee all future fire department promotions.

The city fire union, said President Patrick Egan, never had a problem with the installation of the special master, per se. “As a matter of fact, we agreed,” because wherever there’s fire department testing, something seems to go wrong. A problem began when one of his members, Bell, was removed from his post in a round of budget cuts.

“His livelihood was stripped away from him,” said Egan. When Bell’s job was eliminated, the inspector returned to lower-paid firefighting duties and as part of a grievance process, the union and city agreed he’d be reinstated if a job opened up in the marshal’s office again.

When a position opened up, Bell found the special master standing in his way. Overruling the union-city agreement, the special master, Attorney William Clendenen, ruled the inspector’s should be opened up to a competitive process, not given automatically to Bell. He considered the move a “promotion,” therefore under his jurisdiction. The union considered it a “reinstatement,” resolved through a union grievance process.

Unlike the case’s origins, Wednesday’s debate in Supreme Court didn’t have racial overtones: Bell, like Philpot’s clients, is African-American. At the heart of debate stood a struggle of powers: Who has the final say in cases like Bell’s — the union or the special master?

Union: Don’t Cut Off Our Legs

In a 20-minute argument before the panel of justices, the fire union’s lawyer, Patricia Cofrancesco, argued the Superior Court case had ruled “the powers of the special master trump the union’s ability to settle a grievance.” By municipal employee code, unions have a right to settle grievances on behalf of members.

“The union, and the union alone has the sole power to adjust wages and salaries.” If the superior court’s opinion is upheld, warned Cofrancesco, “we’d have to have any order that so much as smells like a promotion” come before the special master. “What that decision does is cut off the unions legs.”

Philpot: New Haven Needs To Be Watched

Attorney Philpot defended the role of the special master.

In light of the city’s “long and tortured history of promotional exams,” the special master is essential to having “public confidence in the ability and integrity of the promotional process,” he said.

“The union would have this court myopically look at municipal employee code” instead of heeding to superior court’s ability to require competitive exams, argued Philpot.

The fire inspector job should be open to a competitive bid, he argued. “That’s the whole point of civil service.”

“What about the fact that the superior judge remanded Bell’s case to a special master?” asked Justice Christine S. Vertefeuille. Was Bell’s case within the jurisdiction of the special master?

Philpot said despite the particulars of Bell’s case, the city should still open the position to a competitive exam.

“With all due respect to the city of New Haven which I love,” said Philpot, “it needs to be watched with respect to promotions.”