Teamsters Local 1932

After several years of raising concern to leadership at the County of San Bernardino, Teamsters of the County Transitional Assistance Department secured the placement of signage announcing the prohibition of weapons within TAD facilities.

The practice is commonplace throughout State and Federal buildings but had been missing in throughout the dozens of TAD locations in the region. Members advocating for the measure forced the change. “County didn’t care about our safe until Teamsters push the issue,” says Sharon Williams, a TAD Teamster in Redlands.

The issue of clear signage prohibiting weapons was one of several raised in a committee for safety reforms that was formed in the aftermath of the San Bernardino terrorist attack on December 2, 2015. Another proposal that ended up becoming reality was a countywide emergency alert system for employees. Sam Brooks of San Bernardino County Probation Department, who proposed the system at the committee, said to us in March 2018:

“The committee had many outstanding ideas that if the County was truly serious about security and the safety of our brothers and sisters they could implement with little or no cost to the County that would be of tremendous help to our members.

The one that comes to mind is Teamster brothers and sisters at TAD who deal face to face with the public every day and are frequently threatened. I made the suggestion that they have printed up large poster with PC 422 which is making criminal threats and place them around the waiting room as a reminder to those that are waiting to be served that threatening employees isn’t a right of free speech it’s a crime that is enforceable.

While this may not stop people from making threats, I do believe that it would have the psychological effect of reducing the number of incidents of verbal threats that our union brothers and sisters have to withstand.”

TAD Teamsters are committed to continuing to propose solutions to fill gaps in safety. Martha Romero, another Redlands TAD Teamster, says, “Teamsters are getting the County to take safety seriously. Service starts with safety.”

The signage is set to be posted at all County TAD, as well as Department of Department of Aging and Adult Services, facilities by the end of the week.