Archive for December 19th, 2019

Stone Park Fire Department news

Excerpts from teamsterslocal700.com:

Yesterday the Stone Park fire chief notified his employees that he will be outsourcing their work and closing up the fire department immediately after the New Year. The memo from the chief came just days after learning that the 13 firefighter/paramedics that work for the Stone Park Fire Department had filed a majority interest petition with the Illinois Labor Relations Board (ILRB) to be represented by Teamsters Local 700.

On Dec. 2, 2019, the Stone Park Fire Department issued a memo from the deputy chief that the department was now accepting applications for firefighter/paramedics. The ILRB petition for Teamster representation of the current employees was filed on Dec. 5, 2019.

The chief sent out another memo on Dec. 18, 2019 notifying the current firefighters and paramedics that starting in January, their work would be outsourced to the Melrose Park Fire Department due to the best interests of the taxpayers of Stone Park.

“The chief first put out applications for firefighter/EMS and then not even two weeks later says that the village doesn’t have the funds to support the fire department anymore,” said Teamsters Local 700 President Michael G. Melone. “From our experience, this move is not only despicable but puts the residents of Stone Park at risk. Outsourcing the fire department to a nearby town means higher response times when it comes to emergencies. The chief must think that the lives of the people in Stone Park aren’t worth the extra nuisance of having the union around. All of the residents in Stone Park should be extremely concerned and should be asking the village and the mayor why they are allowing this to happen.”

thanks Danny

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Park Ridge Fire Department news (more)

Excerpts from the journal-topics.com:

After learning the extent of damages to the city’s only ladder truck in the fire at the former Marathon gas station at Northwest Highway and Oakton this summer, the fire department looked for ways to streamline the process of purchasing a replacement truck. Prices are due to go up at the beginning of the year, and this month offered a small window of time to see that 2020 prices would be higher than they wanted to pay.

The old tower ladder was scheduled to be replaced in the next fiscal year because of its age, but that postpones the year-long construction process at least six more months.

The fire truck purchasing cooperative with the Houston-Galveston Area Council in Texas offers members access to detailed specifications from many fire vehicle manufacturers and gives a chance to order directly from the manufacturer.

They determined the costs for the basic truck, and that the customizing would add approximately $200,000 for the equipment and controls.

The department came back to the December Committee of the Whole to ask for a purchase order, not to exceed $1,136,103 for a rear mount ladder truck made by Pierce Manufacturing with an Enforcer cab and chassis. The measure advanced to the Monday, Dec. 16 council meeting where it passed, 6-0.

The fire department will also be applying for grant programs to help cover the costs.

thanks Bill

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