Columbus firefighters will receive a nearly 18% raise between now and October 2025 as part of a new three-year contract.
The contract will allow city firefighters to receive retroactive pay, in the amount of a 7.5% increase, dating back to their Nov. 1, 2023 pay period. The second pay raise would be 5% at the start of Nov. 1, 2024, and a 5% increase starting Nov. 1, 2025.
The 17.5% pay raise will cost the city $103 million over the next three years.
City officials noted that 1,712 firefighters will get the pay hike. The top salary is $97,000, while roughly 500 earn between $60,000 to $70,000, WBNS reported.
"It's one of the largest pay increases we've received in the last couple decades,” said Steven Stein President of Columbus Firefighters Local 167.