FAST FACTS:
- A Memphis Firefighters union representative is taking heat for disparaging messages posted on his Facebook page.
- A civil service appeal says that Robert Kramer, Jr. was recently demoted for insubordination.
- A Memphis City councilman wants an apology for the people at which the messages were aimed.
(Memphis 10/01/11) ? Memphis City Councilman Kemp Conrad is frustrated to learn Saturday that Memphis firefighter and union representative, Robert Kramer Jr., was demoted in January 2010 for disrespecting a battalion chief, while off duty. �This comes to light just one day after officials learned of disparaging messages on his Facebook page about the people in Frayser.
?I heard the big union leader last night, Mr. Norman, say that he has an impeccable record and apparently that?s not a true statement,? said Conrad.
He is upset that a man in Kramer?s position, �a fire lieutenant, �should know better than to make poor judgment calls, like acting insubordinate or posting damaging messages on Facebook.
?What?s really interesting is the silence is deafening from the top fire leadership on this,? said Conrad. ?Either what was done was wrong or not. I think the people of Frayser deserve an apology.?
According to a civil service appeal, Kramer was off duty when he responded to a fire. The document says he parked his truck in the middle of the road. And when the battalion chief asked Kramer to move it, Kramer refused the order ? not just once, but twice. �
Vice-President of the Memphis Firefighters Association, Joe Norman, defended Kramer by saying this was an off-duty incident, and his on-duty record is impeccable.
Despite last year?s incident, Kramer is still a fire union representative. Norman says that?s because he didn?t violate the union?s constitution or by-laws. �Plus, he is in an elected position.
?In the past, the way he?s responding to these obstacles off duty has shed a negative light on him and brought him under the eye of the administration,? said Norman.
However, Conrad still wants a public apology for those in Frayser. The question becomes whether the firefighters union believes it?s necessary.
?Well, they may be getting one,? said Norman. ?This just all unfolded, got dropped in our lap a little more than 24 hours ago.?
The firefighters union says they will investigate Kramer?s comments and decide whether he will stay as a union representative. Much of it will depend on the Memphis Fire Department?s investigation into the messages. �
Conrad says he hopes the union won?t sweep it under the rug.
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