RI Firefighters, City Agree to Tentative Contract

WARWICK, RI — Negotiators for the city and the executive board of Warwick's firefighters union have reached agreement on a proposed union contract that would bolster the city's financial position, Mayor Joseph J. Solomon said Tuesday.

The proposed contract, which remains subject to ratification votes by the union's membership and by Warwick's City Council, would incorporate pension language already written into the city's ordinances, said Solomon.

"This should have been done in the past," Solomon said. "It's being done now."

The pension provision, as well as others in the proposed deal, would resolve a collection of grievances raised in arbitration proceedings by the International Association of Fire Fighters, Local 2748, Solomon said.

The contract would cover two fiscal years, including the current year that ends on June 30 and the year that starts July 1, Solomon said.

Firefighters would receive no raises during that time frame, he said.

The changes, if approved, would brighten the overall financial picture for Warwick, said Solomon, who just last month announced an arbitration defeat that left the city on the hook for a more expensive array of pension benefits for firefighters. At the time, Solomon estimated that the city also owed $2.6 million based on the arbitrators' decision.

The proposed contract would put the firefighters' pension program back on a stronger path, according to Solomon.

"This Fire Department and the union leadership are willing to work in a positive direction together with the city for a better Warwick," Solomon said.

The union's president, Michael Carreiro, said Tuesday that the union's executive board has scheduled a May 8 ratification vote on a contract proposal.

He said he could not comment on the terms.

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