Excerpts from the ChicagoTribune.com:
Franklin Park’s firefighters’ union is turning to arbitration to hash out a new contract with the village more than a year after the firefighters’ last deal expired.
“For the last 50 years, we have been able to sit down and work things out to avoid ever going to the last resort,” said Douglas Halverson, president of the International Association of Firefighters Franklin Park Local 1526. “Tens of thousands have already been spent negotiating and that number will double by the end of arbitration.”
Halverson made his comments to the Franklin Park Village Board during the public comment section of the board’s meeting Monday evening. Arbitration over the contract was scheduled to begin Wednesday, July 15.The contract isn’t the only issue the firefighters’ union wants to go to arbitration over — Halverson says they also want to take up a number of grievances at another set of hearings. Those include going two years without raises, the closing of a fire station, having union members staff an ambulance at a lesser wage, and the village not hiring additional firefighters to bring the department to full capacity.
“When you sit down in executive session, have you asked, ‘Why so many grievances now?’ Have you asked why we filed an unfair labor practice?” he said to the board. “Have you asked, ‘How we can avoid arbitration?’ This union only put ink to paper after failed attempts to resolve these issues.”
According to documents obtained by the Franklin Park Herald-Journal, the most recent agreement with the union lasted from May 1, 2012, until April 30, 2014. Negotiations between the village and the firefighters’ union began months before the expiration of that agreement and have continued into this year.
Halverson went on to say the reason the union agreed to concessions, like staffing the ambulance at a lesser wage and trying to “do more with less,” was that the village said it was in a deficit five years ago and the union was under the impression that, once the most recent contract expired, the village would fund the department better.
“For the first time in my career, we staff a ladder truck with two firefighters. This is unsafe,” said Halverson.
Franklin Park officials believe they’ve offered the union a fair deal, according to an emailed statement from the village’s attorney.
“The village has negotiated with the fire department’s union in good faith and has strived to accommodate many of the issues raised by the union’s leadership … the village believes the compensation package offered to the union’s leadership is fair and equitable and will continue to work toward a reasonable resolution of the union’s salary and other financial demands.”
Unlike litigation, arbitration takes place out of court. The two sides choose an impartial third party, an arbitrator, to oversee a hearing where each side presents evidence and testimony. The union and the village will split the cost of the arbitrator’s services, according to the most recent union contract. The arbitrator will then submit a ruling on the conflict within 30 days of the hearings and the decision will be final and binding to all parties.
#1 by Jim on July 20, 2015 - 4:01 PM
Mike,
The contract says 10 man shifts. This contract was settled with this language. While the members may not like it now, both parties are held to it. It sounds to me that some in the union did not like this arrangement and elected a new union president to try and change it. I don’t see it happening.
#2 by Steve D on July 19, 2015 - 1:48 PM
Sad days indeed for the Village. Franklin Park used to be the envy of the surrounding villages. Within the past 10 or so years village funding issues have lead to budget cuts, purchasing demo ambulances and closing down a station. Now it is fighting the Union of. firefighters protecting the town. Former Chief Ivan Sherry must be rolling in his grave to see how his department is being maintained. Sadly, it is just one aspect of the impact of a poorly managed town.
#3 by Jim on July 19, 2015 - 12:21 PM
Mike,
The firefighters union agreed to 10 man shifts and staffing ambulances in order to remove the contract paramedics and avoid layoffs. Is this still the case?
#4 by Mike on July 19, 2015 - 6:55 PM
Under the current contract I believe they 10 was the manning, but I think that didn’t include 4 silver spanner spots a day. The silver spanner spots were for the ambulances after PSI was removed. As the FP guys became medics they weened out the silver spanners and from what I am told the manning was still supposed to stay at 14. I think all of this happened while they were already covered under this contract and the firemen were told to make concession or face layoffs at that time.
#5 by Chuck on July 18, 2015 - 10:57 PM
Too many chiefs nowadays are anti-firemen and anti-union. They clearly have forgotten where they came from and are only looking to feather their own nests and burnish their credentials to job hop somewhere else after they’ve destroyed their department.
#6 by Mike on July 18, 2015 - 6:52 AM
It’s nice to see the village, mayor and fire chief all work so hard to spend money on arbitration when the city could be spending on other things like manpower. The fire chief, past union president, and the union actually went to arbitration and fought for his promotion to commander has closed a firehouse, taken companies out of service and personally attacked local members. The mayor seems to forget also he ran on a pro labor stance and the firefighters endorsed him. Also everyone seems to forget that the firemen have worked very hard, many went to paramedic school to avoid layoffs, many worked for less pay to make sure 2 ambulances were staffed for the city all while manning has been reduced. The department closed down an engine and has reduced the staffing on their ladder to only 2 people.