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Put
it in
Writing?
How
many of us have been order to "put it in writing"? Only to have our
reports used as the basis of discipline? Before you "put it
in writing", the details
surrounding an incident that will lead to Departmental
charges, read these cases and consult with your union representative
and attorney. I believe that the Weingarten rules apply here,
and
the
courts have upheld that they do.
I was of the impression that when you are told to "put it in writing", it is a "direct order" and if you do not comply that you are insubordinate. The Courts have ruled differently in this area and accordingly, if you are asked to "put it in writing", you should immediately ask:
Will this lead to discipline?
If the answer is yes, request your union representative.
If you are denied your union representative, tell them you are invoking your Weingarten rights and decline to give the written account. If they persist, write on the statement that you have been "compelled" to provide the statement as a "direct order" and have been denied union representation. The statement will more than likely be inadmissable and any charges brought as a result of the statement will be dismissed.
Elizabethtown Police Assoc. v.
Elizabethtown Borough, 35 PPER 115 (PA/2004)
City of Reading, 689 A2d 990 (Pa. Com. 1997)
Watson v.
Riverside, 976 F. Supp. 95 (C.D.Cal. 1997)