OH Firefighters Get Raises in New Deal

Nov. 7 -- Columbus firefighters would receive pay raises retroactive to Nov. 1, 2017, while paying a larger portion of their health-care premiums as part of a new contract between their union and the city.

Members of the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 67 voted Tuesday and Wednesday to ratify a proposed contract that now must go to the Columbus City Council for final approval.

The contract includes pay raises of 3.25 percent for 2017 and 2018 and 3.5 percent for 2019 for the more than 1,500 firefighters who work in Columbus. Firefighters would receive back pay for the retroactive raises.

Firefighters also would pay higher health insurance premiums, though. Now, they pay up to 12 percent of those premiums, but that would rise to 14 percent by 2020 for current firefighters. The city would charge 20 percent of the premium to firefighters hired after Jan. 1.

If the city council approves the deal, it will conclude more than 15 months of bargaining with the city's second largest union as it works to complete deals with all six bargaining units. The previous contract expired Oct. 31, 2017.

"I believe it's a fair deal. It was a tough negotiation. It took 15 months. Both sides worked hard to get a deal that was fair," said Dave Montgomery, president of Local 67. "We're paying more in health care, and we got some back in wages."

Under the new contract, the city will hire a "cancer treatment advocate" who will help firefighters diagnosed with cancer get quick treatment and access to doctors while navigating the health-care system, Montgomery said.

Last year, The Dispatch ran an investigative series that detailed the threat of cancer for firefighters and the steps needed to reduce their risk. In a survey of about 1,300 firefighters across Ohio, The Dispatch found that 1 in 6 had been diagnosed with cancer during their careers.

Changes in the contract for firefighters largely mirror changes the city has been making with other unions. In exchange for pay raises, existing union employees have agreed to pay higher insurance premiums and to raise premiums even more on new workers.

Of the city's six union contracts, only the Fraternal Order of Police Capital City Lodge No. 9 remains unresolved. That contract is in a fact-finding stage.

In a side letter to the contract, the city and the fire union agreed to begin bargaining on the next contract 90 days before the contract expires, with weekly sessions. If an agreement cannot be reached in those 90 days, the contract would go to fact-finding. Montgomery said those changes could help speed up negotiations in the future.

"We bargained in good faith. The teams for the city and IAFF reached a tentative agreement on what both sides believed to be a good deal. The voting members agreed. We're fortunate labor and management could work together to deliver the best services for the citizens of this great city," said Nikki Brandon, the city's human resources director.

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