Pay Parity Layoffs of 220 Houston Firefighters OK'd

The Houston City Council voted Wednesday to lay off 220 Houston firefighters to help pay for Proposition B, the voter-approved measure giving firefighters equal pay to police officers of corresponding rank and experience.

The 10-6 vote followed more than two hours of discussion. Mayor Sylvester Turner and the Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association, meanwhile, continue meeting in mediation over how to implement Prop B.

Turner estimates the raises will cost the city roughly $80 million annually. He has repeatedly said that unless the union agrees to phase the raises in over five years, hundreds of firefighters and municipal employees will face layoffs.

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The union has agreed to a phase-in over three to five years, though Turner maintains that time frame would still necessitate some lay-offs.

Turner and the union will meet again Monday, but they face a looming deadline: The city must approve a balanced budget for the next fiscal year by July 1.

The council could reverse its Wednesday decision if a deal is struck in mediation, though neither side seems optimistic about that prospect.

In a statement after the vote, the firefighters' union blasted Turner and others for what they called "one of the most reckless political stunts in Houston history."

"(Turner's) failed leadership and relentless political and legal attacks on firefighter families will now put the communities we serve at risk," the statement said.

The mayor was similarly grim about the talks. He resisted requests from council members that they delay a vote on the layoffs to allow mediation to continue.

"There's nothing certain about this mediation," he said. "But what is certain is that we have to balance our budget."

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