IL Firefighters Union Loses Grievance Over Shift Hours

A grievance over shfit hour by an Illinois firefighters union was denied by the Ottawa City Council during a closed-door meeting Tuesday. 

City officials, including Fire Chief Andy Borkowski, cited safety concerns over rejecting the grievance by Local 523 Firefighters, the Ottawa Times reports. Since 2013, the department's work schedule had been 48-hour shifts with 96 hours off.

But in 2019, that will change to 24-hour shifts with 48 hours off, a move upseting Ottawa firefighters. Mayor Bob Eschbach told the Times that "we have more accidents on the second 24-hour part of the shift than the first 24-hour part of the shift." 

Although the union did not speak about the decision after Tuesday's meeting, officials have said in the past that changes in shift hours should be made during collective bargaining. But Eschbach told the Times that a change to the 24-hour shifts could be made if the chief and city council agreed safety was a concern.