When members of Portland’s broader labor ecosystem found out about the city police union’s bid to join the Northwest Oregon Labor Council (NOLC), many immediately reacted with suspicion. While the Portland Police Association (PPA) and NOLC leaders said their goal was to bring workers of all stripes together, labor activists and police critics were doubtful, immediately pointing out the potential downsides to the arrangement. 

Now, what NOLC leadership appeared to believe would be a simple introduction has turned into a sizable controversy, raising complicated questions about if and how the police union fits into Portland’s larger labor movement, and what solidarity between city workers looks like during a budget crisis.

The NOLC is a labor association with more than 100 affiliate members across Multnomah, Clackamas, Washington, and Columbia counties. NOLC holds meetings and other events to mobilize its member unions and coordinate interunion activity. The council has also attempted to wield its influence over local politics, launching a coalition specifically to elect labor-friendly candidates to Portland City Council in the 2024 election. 

Its membership has not, historically, included the PPA, the union which represents the city’s rank-and-file cops, sergeants, detectives, and other Portland Police Bureau staff, as well as 911 dispatchers and dispatch supervisors who work for the city’s Bureau of Emergency Communications. 

But recently, the council’s executive board voted to approve PPA’s membership in the group. According to NOLC Executive Secretary-Treasurer Laurie Wimmer, board members believed the police union has taken strides to “be transformational” and stand in solidarity with other members of the group. 

“Our board believes that as we strive to do better, to be better, we must make room for others to do so as well,” Wimmer told the Mercury. “Unity makes us all accountable to each other and can lead to better understanding and collaboration.” 

The newfound affiliation between NOLC and PPA came to light in a February letter from Wimmer to the chairs of Portland City Council’s Community and Public Safety Committee. In the letter, Wimmer detailed her objection to a resolution on behalf of the PPA, NOLC’s “newest affiliate.” 

PPA’s membership was news to members of many other NOLC affiliates, and, for some, unpleasant news at that. Despite the talks of unity and solidarity, it was unclear to many critics how the council and its other members would benefit from the police union joining their ranks. Many people saw the PPA’s bid to join the labor group as a way for police—seeing more criticism from inside City Hall—to defend themselves against citywide budget cuts and new accountability measures. 

“As trade unionists, we see through this cynical attempt by the police to shield themselves from accountability and budget cuts. They’ve gotten used to bloated personnel and equipment budgets, absurd overtime payouts, and immunity for violent misconduct,” members of the Portland Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) wrote in a recent blog post on the subject. “But with four socialists elected to City Council, the police union is suddenly trying to brand itself as a “'friend of workers.'”

Backlash to PPA’s membership, including an online petition started by Portland DSA, prompted NOLC leadership to call for a council-wide vote on the matter, which will take place at the end of the month. 

No matter the outcome, however, the tension is likely here to stay, amplified by potential layoffs impacting city workers. 

Police unions and the labor movement

It shouldn’t have been a surprise that PPA’s entry into a labor organization like NOLC would be controversial. Police unions have long occupied a unique and contentious role in the American labor ecosystem, both because of the power and authority they yield in comparison to other collective bargaining units, and due to the nature of police work itself. 

This isn’t the first time in recent history a labor council has had to contend with police membership. In 2020, the King County Labor Council—the largest labor organization in the Seattle region—voted to remove the city’s police union from its membership. The decision came amid nationwide protests against racist police brutality in the wake of George Floyd’s murder in Minneapolis. The labor council said the Seattle Police Officers Guild has failed to do the work to “actively dismantle racism in their institution and society at large,” which they said was a requirement for being part of the organization. 

Critics point to a history of police interfering with union activity as one of the top reasons for their skepticism about the PPA joining the labor group. As the petition against PPA’s membership puts it, “police serve as strike-breakers across the nation and in Portland, always siding with bosses against organized workers.” 

One recent example labor advocates point to comes from the Laborers Local 483 strike in 2023, when former Mayor Ted Wheeler sent police to the picket line, alleging violence among union members and supporters. Wheeler’s claims were unsubstantiated, but police maintained a presence on the picket line throughout the strike, setting up a hostile dynamic between city laborers and cops. 

Opponents of the PPA-NOLC relationship also say they’re concerned about how the Portland police union has treated other people, including local politicians who have attempted to hold the Police Bureau accountable. In fact, some critics believe the PPA’s interest in joining the NOLC is because they’re threatened by a new, more progressive City Council, who may be more likely to include public safety employees in citywide budget cuts and put forward initiatives to strengthen police accountability. 

Nick Caleb, an attorney and member of Communications Workers of America Local 7901’s leadership team, told the Mercury he thinks the police union “sees itself as vulnerable” with a new system of government in place at City Hall. Five of the PPA’s picks for City Council won election last fall, but Caleb and other critics believe the political shake-up has made the police union anxious, and they’re seeking backup from the broader labor movement. 

“They’re stunned by the outcomes of the elections and the recognition that they don’t have the power they used to,” Caleb said. 

Wimmer and PPA President Aaron Schmautz have another perspective. Wimmer has said she was the one who courted the police union for membership as part of broader recruitment efforts. She told the Mercury she sees the move as part of a “‘Big Tent’ approach to ‘Union Strong.’” 

“We believe that now is the time to stand together and fight threats to our unions, our communities, our economy and our democracy because of the national landscape,” Wimmer told the Mercury. “Believing in the right of ALL workers to be part of unions means ALL workers.” 

Wimmer also said the NOLC already includes affiliates who represent law enforcement officers, including the Teamsters and AFSCME. 

“I point [that] out because the Executive Board’s decision to admit PPA was not a precedent-setting move,” Wimmer said. 

Schmautz didn’t say why he and other PPA leaders want to join the labor council. But, he told the Mercury, “law enforcement labor exists within the same ecosystem as all labor in our city.”

“Our concerns for our members’ pay, benefits (including health care), and working conditions often intersect with many other unions as well, as we represent many cooperating entities,” Schmautz wrote in an email. “Over the past several years we have seen mutual concerns grow, and we stand in solidarity with our labor family as we all work to restore our city.” 

Schmautz added that PPA wants to have a dialogue about the concerns the union has heard about their membership in the labor council. He said there are “misperceptions which we feel are important to address” in the petition against the PPA joining the NOLC, though he didn’t elaborate on what the misconceptions are.

“It is impossible to grow without engaging in hard and thoughtful dialogue,” Schmautz said. “The PPA has extended an invitation to any member, delegate, or organization who wishes to do that work.” 

Moving forward 

It’s unclear if the public backlash to the police union’s affiliation with the NOLC will result in their membership getting rejected in a council vote, set to occur on April 28. If the PPA’s membership is confirmed, however, at least one other affiliate might be out. 

Caleb said if the PPA is admitted, he’ll bring a motion before members of his union, CWA Local 7901, to “reconsider [their] affiliation” with the labor council. 

“Labor councils thrive on trust and collaboration, yet this decision was apparently made quickly, opportunistically, and unilaterally to give the public appearance of broad labor support and credibility to the PPA, without first consulting the very workers whose safety and rights are impacted by police violence,” Caleb wrote in a letter to Wimmer. “Members of my [union] have firsthand experience with PPA members’ excessive use of force at protests… To suddenly share a labor umbrella with the PPA undermines their trust in NOLC as a safe space for labor movement solidarity actions.” 

Caleb and others have also raised concerns about the NOLC using its resources to defend the PPA, possibly at the expense of police accountability measures that progressive labor activists support. They believe the February letter from Wimmer to members of the Public Safety Committee is an early example of that. 

The letter outlined the NOLC’s opposition to a resolution that would impact the nominating committee for the city’s new Community Board for Police Accountability. The language and city code amendments related to how the CBPA will operate had already been agreed to by the PPA in bargaining sessions—despite objections from police accountability advocates and watchdogs, who believed the police union watered down the accountability board. 

Wimmer said she was concerned City Council was trying to interfere in a bargaining subject after the fact, indicating councilors are “willing to use [their] legislative powers to overturn results of hard-fought labor negotiations.” 

“If this can be imposed on one group of city workers—our law enforcement professionals—other contracts could be undermined in the future, too,” Wimmer wrote. 

The CBPA resolution remains in the committee. Councilor Sameer Kanal, who proposed the language, indicated he wants to have more conversations about the amendments with his fellow councilors and members of the public. 

Though Schmautz said he wants to engage in thoughtful dialogue with other union members, critics are skeptical the conversation would go both ways. At a Community and Public Safety policy committee meeting on April 8, Councilor Angelita Morillo asked Schmautz if the union would be willing to engage in a “truth and reconciliation” process with community members harmed by the police. His response was illustrative of the concerns many labor advocates have expressed. 

The name “truth and reconciliation” comes from the South African commission established to facilitate healing after the end of apartheid. It was proposed by former Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty in 2020 as a way to address systemic racism in the police force. But Schmautz disagreed with the idea then, raising concerns about using taxpayer money to pay for it and how it would perpetuate the “inaccurate” view that PPB is racist. He remains skeptical. 

“I had some serious concerns about the way [the idea] was presented. Police officers are human beings. They’re mothers, they’re fathers, they come to work and they go home every day,” Schmautz said at the April 8 meeting. “What I’d like to do in our city is ensure that our police officers are present, they’re available, that we’re having the hard conversations.” 

Schmautz added he was a “solid maybe” on the idea of truth and reconciliation. 

“We need to make sure that we're actually [moving forward] and addressing the past harms,” Morillo said. “I also think we have to account for power dynamics. As an elected official, I have a lot of power. Police officers have a lot of power. They have the power of state-sanctioned violence. And with great power comes great responsibility.” 

That power imbalance is at the heart of the opposition to PPA’s membership in the labor council. Critics say that while the police union may benefit from their affiliation, they don’t see an upside for anyone else—especially while the PPA continues, in their view, to avoid accountability. 

Sarah Kowaleski, a labor activist and staffer at Portland Jobs With Justice, told the Mercury that thinking of the PPA as “just another union defending the interests of city employees” ignores the police union’s “role in enforcing state-powered violence,” and the brawn that gives them compared to other city labor groups.

“The PPA knows we have a labor-friendly City Council, and that labor is popular. They understand that unions lift the standards for all workers and working people, and they’re making overtures to other city unions to say, ‘We’re all on the same side here, right?’” Kowaleski said. “But the reality is, if the past is any precedent, police will be funded. Other city workers will be set up on a path of austerity and cuts.”