County union factoins agree in court to truce

Battling factions of Suffolk’s Association of Municipal Employees have agreed in State Supreme Court to a temporary truce, and put off disciplinary charges against one another until May 20, after next month’s union election is complete.

Under a stipulation reached before Justice Gerard Asher March 19, the sides also agreed the union election with six competing slates will be handled by the American Arbitration Association.

That means the associaton alone will count votes, be in charge of stuffing and mailing ballots, and the only ones with access to the post office box where ballots will be sent in. The court order specifies “no union staff will have access one way or another.”

After several months in which board of directors meetings have been all shut down, both AME president Dan Farrell and the board of directors have also agreed to conduct a board meeting on April 30, after the election is held. The sides have also agreed there will be a parliamentarian on hand to make rulings on procedures. If the sides cannot agree on selection of a parliamentarian, each faction will submit three names and the judge will makes the final selection.