Charles Paris Reelected as Bridgeport Police Union President

Members of Local 1159 of Council 4 AFSCME, the Bridgeport Police Union, have reelected Sgt. Charles “Chuck” Paris to serve a fifth term as President of the 414-member bargaining unit.

“It is an honor and a privilege to lead the dedicated public servants who make up the Bridgeport Police Union,” Paris commented. “We take immense pride in our sworn duty to protect and to serve. We have a strong and engaged union membership dedicated to fulfilling our public mission and seeing that we as police officers are treated fairly and respectfully.”

Paris will serve a three-year term as Local 1159 president. In addition, Ofc. Dan Gerardi was elected for the position of Secretary while Ofc. Michael Carter, Ofc. Ricardo Lopez and Lt. Ronald Mercado were elected to serve on the Executive Board. A run-off election for three additional Executive Board positions will be conducted in November.

In October, Sgt. Bradford Seely ran unopposed and was elected as Vice President, and Sgt. Phil Sharpe also ran unopposed and was reelected to serve as Treasurer.

The newly elected union officers were sworn in Oct. 9 2017.

Paris said that union leadership will continue to seek improvements in staffing, safety and morale, along with the settlement of a new collective bargaining agreement. The Union and the City have begun to engage in binding contract arbitration.

“We hope to achieve a reasonable settlement that honors and respects the work we do as law enforcement officers,” Paris said. “It’s about respect and a voice on the job.”