ATTLEBORO — Mayor Paul Heroux was found to have violated state law twice in 2020 when he made disparaging comments concerning the president of the city’s firefighters union and when he “made coercive comments” to the wife of a firefighter.
The 39-page ruling was issued by the state’s Department of Labor Relations on Monday less than two weeks before an election that will decide the Bristol County sheriff’s race between Heroux and incumbent Tom Hodgson.
As a result of the findings, the city was required to post a notice saying it would not “make coercive comments or disparaging comments about union officials’ concerted, protected activity.”
And, in addition, it would not “in any like or similar manner interfere with, restrain, or coerce any other employee in the exercise of their … rights.”
The hearing officer in the case also ruled the city was justified when it issued a reprimand to Attleboro Firefighters Local 848 President Paul Jacques for his attempt to allow outsiders into a fire station in August 2020 after the mayor had issued a “no visitors” order for all city buildings in an effort to stem the spread of the coronavirus.
Heroux said he disagreed with the decision on a number of points, but was pleased that DLR upheld the reprimand of Jacques.
For his part, Jacques said he was happy with the findings of the DLR.
“These continued injustices perpetrated by Mayor Heroux against our members, their families, and our retirees must come to an end,” he said in emailed comments. “It is our hope that from this evidence-based decision Heroux is reminded of the respect and equality women deserve in today’s world and that his abuse of power will stop.”
According to hearing officer Gail Sorokoff, the mayor went afoul of state law during a dispute between him and the union about whether coronavirus would be considered an injury on duty, or IOD.
An IOD would require the city to pay for all medical care, while an injury not on duty would require the firefighter to use his or her own medical insurance.
At the time, Heroux said if a firefighter could demonstrate that the disease was contracted on duty it would be considered an IOD.
The dispute revolved around one firefighter who was hospitalized with coronavirus and denied IOD coverage.
The dispute was acrimonious and involved demonstrations by union members. At one point Heroux characterized Jacques as “a liar,” which put him over the line, Sorokoff said.
She said state law prohibits “the expression of employer anger, criticism, or ridicule directed to an employee’s protected activity,” which in this case would be speech.
“I find that Mayor Heroux’s comment, indicating that he believed Jacques was a liar who was circulating lies regarding the Mayor’s IOD policy, reflects Mayor Heroux’s anger at Jacques and disparaged Jacques for his protected comments,” she wrote. “Although Mayor Heroux can state his policy and his beliefs, he is not free to criticize and disparage protected activity as he did here … Mayor Heroux’s comments conveyed his anger and were demeaning to Jacques …”
Heroux was also found to have violated the law in comments he made privately on Facebook to the wife of a city fire lieutenant.
Neither the wife nor lieutenant was named in the decision.
In that instance it was found that comments Heroux made included a statement that he had not fired her husband because of an arrest, implying she should be grateful for that.
He said the previous mayor (Kevin Dumas) “would have (fired him) without question.”
The mayor said “before you go attacking me, try to remember everything.”
The wife responded that was “none of the mayor’s concern.”
Heroux responded, “I am the mayor of the city and he was an employee under me. It absolutely was my business.”
Sorokoff found that language was threatening.
“Mayor Heroux’s … comment that (the) Spouse should remember everything before attacking him could reasonably be construed as a threat … I find that a threat to an employee’s spouse that concerns the employee would reasonably chill an employee from engaging in protected activity.”
In response, Heroux blasted the DLR for releasing the decision just before the election, saying that this was “now a political issue.”
“I think it’s unethical for a state agency to interfere with elections and release the results of something (in either direction) two weeks before an election,” Heroux said in an email to The Sun Chronicle.
He also leveled charges that Hodgson is under investigation by the state Ethics Commission for allegedly using “taxpayer-funded government resources to assist with his campaign,” a comment that Hodgson’s spokesperson called a “fake complaint.”
Heroux said that investigation won’t be released until the election is over “because they don’t want to interfere (in either direction) with the election.”
And he disagreed with the finding concerning the wife of the firefighter.
“I didn’t know who she was when she first reached out to me on my Facebook page,” he said. “I sent her a private message addressing her concerns. Later I learned that she was the wife of a firefighter. I used three specific examples of how the previous mayor would have fired three firefighters, who had been arrested, but I did not take that action. I gave the firefighters the benefit of the doubt.”
And he rebutted the allegation of a “chilling effect” on protected activity.
“I also strongly disagree with the DLR for their statement that my comments had a ‘chilling effect’ on firefighters expressing speech,” he said. “A handful of firefighters have consistently and routinely left disparaging comments on my Facebook page directed at me for years. If there was any ‘chilling effect,’ they would not leave those.”
Heroux said Hodgson was accused of 25 unfair labor practices at the beginning of his career as sheriff and has been sued for millions of dollars.
Hodgson’s campaign spokesperson, Holly Robichaud, fired back.
“Mr. Heroux harassed the wife of a city employee,” she said. “This is not the only complaint against him. Heroux lied during the debate saying he had no problems.”
Regarding Heroux’s claim that the sheriff had 25 unfair labor practices filed against him she said those came as a result of Hodgson “cleaning up the office.”
“When the sheriff (opened) the office he cleaned up the office,” she said. “That angered some of employees that worked for the previous sheriff.”
And Robichaud accused Heroux of perpetrating a political stunt.
“Heroux filed fake ethics complaints to try to fool voters,” she said. “It is just a cheap political stunt done by a professional politician who got caught harassing a woman.”
The one decision Heroux agreed with concerned disciplinary action on Jacques.
“I was very pleased that the (DLR) found that I did not retaliate against Paul Jacques’ claim that I had,” he wrote. “They found that Paul Jacques was disciplined and (reprimanded) for insubordination and that was upheld.”
That situation involved inviting “visitors” into a fire station after Heroux issued an order prohibiting it early in the coronavirus pandemic in 2020.
It involved firefighters bicycling across New England which was known as a “Brotherhood Ride” to support “those who had died from on-duty injuries.”
The riders were to stop at an Attleboro fire station.
A presentation was to be made and food and drinks were to be served on Aug. 8, 2020. But Jacques had not gotten prior approval and was issued a reprimand, which was upheld by Sorokoff.
George W. Rhodes can be reached at 508-236-0432.
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