Union Claims City Violates Florida Labor Law

Cape Coral, FLThe Cape Coral, Florida police union claims that the city is violating Florida labor law by forcing 11 officers to pay back $96,000 in raises associated with college credits the officers did not earn, the News-Press reports.

The officers reportedly each owe between $3,600 and $23,000, according to the news provider.

"They can't just go and start stealing money back from the employee," the union's attorney told the news source.

The attorney added that he sent a letter to the city recently that outlined the union's position. He said if the city decides to begin taking the money from the officers' paychecks next month, he will seek an injunction from Florida's Public Employee Relations Commission, which deals with potential labor law violations, according to the news source.

If the first negotiations between the city and the union fail, the attorney said that a mediator is typically brought in. If all options are exhausted, he said that the City Council would ultimately decide the issue.

According to the Public Employee Relations Commission's Web site, "there are approximately 400,000 public employees of bargaining units throughout the state of Florida."