pScott M. Burch, the president of the union that represents Rome city firefighters, has some simple advice for Watertown officials and members of the local firefighters’ bargaining unit about solving their long contract dispute./pp“You have to have both sides give up something,” said Mr. Burch, a lieutenant in the Rome Fire Department and president of the 83-member Rome Professional Firefighters Association Local 694./ppMr. Burch went through a bitter contract dispute between the city of Rome and the firefighters’ bargaining unit similar to Watertown’s situation./ppThe contract discord in Rome went to arbitration before the two sides came to a tentative agreement in May./ppFor years, the city tried to eliminate a minimum manning stipulation requiring that 17 firefighters be on duty at all times to ensure their safety. /ppThe issue has been a major sticking point for the contract issues in Watertown, as well. The Watertown Professional Fire Fighters Association Local 191 filed for arbitration after the City Council recently demoted eight of the 20 captains for a savings of about $101,000./ppUnable to come up with an agreement, the firefighters union took Rome to arbitration mostly over that same issue, Mr. Burch said. The previous mayor and Common Council took a hard-line approach./ppIn the end, the new Rome contract reduces that number to 16 per day after the two sides went through “a lot of negotiations,” Fire Chief Ronald M. Brement said. However, it only involves one person because the department works on a 24-hour shift, something that the Watertown union has proposed and the city rejected. /ppThe Rome deal includes no layoffs and leaves the fire department with a staff of 77./ppThe change should save the city “upwards of $300,000,” said Mayor Jacqueline M. Izzo, who took office in January./ppAnd Mr. Burch believes the union and the city took the right approach to get the contract done./pp“We know what taxpayers are going through,” Mr. Burch said. “We know everybody is going through tough times.”/ppIn return, the city agreed that all firefighters with 32 years of service will earn more benefits when they retire. The city agreed to pay 70 percent of their salary at the time they leave the job. /ppPrior to the contract agreement, fewer than half of the firefighters qualified for those benefits under the state’s retirement system, Mayor Izzo said. /ppWhile the sides fought under the previous administration, the tone of the contract talks softened when Mayor Izzo took office, Mr. Burch said. Even the union’s lawyer, Ronald Dunn, “was amazed” by the tactic that she took and told union officials that “she cares about employees,” Mr. Burch said. /ppIn recent years, the city of Auburn and its firefighters’ union also went through issues similar to those currently happening in Watertown./ppAuburn Common Council members decided on job reductions. Escalating overtime costs became an issue as the result of positions left vacant. A federal grant was proposed to keep firefighters on the job and pay for their salaries. /ppIn 2013, the fire department’s union unsuccessfully fought slashing six firefighter positions and not filling four others. That caused overtime to go “crazy wild out of control,” said Fire Chief Jeff Dygert, who is also now serving as the acting city manager./ppA year later, the Common Council and the firefighters’ union finally agreed on a new four-year contract that included a minimum manning reduction plan that went into effect, Chief Dygert said. /ppAs a result, the department’s 14 firefighters per shift dropped to 12, leaving a staffing level of 64 firefighters. It gave firefighters no salary increases in the first two years and 1 percent and 2 percent in the final two years./ppThe new contract saved the city about $300,000 in 2014-15 and helped with overtime expenses, he said. Veteran firefighters also get higher salaries in their later years of employment./ppThe federal Staffing for Adequate Fire & Emergency Response grant got a second look after the makeup of the Common Council changed as the result of elections, the fire chief said. Auburn accepted the $1 million grant that’s paying for the salaries of six firefighters over a three-year period./ppNow in its third year, the contract will expire next May./pp“It was lengthy contract talks, so we’re going to have to start negotiating again in July for the next contract,” Chief Dygert said./ppBut Daniel Daugherty, president of the Watertown firefighters’ union, pointed out that an arbiter sided with Auburn’s bargaining unit over the minimum manning issue. The Auburn union ended up taking the city to court when it did not go along with the arbiter’s decision, he said. In the end, the union ended up on the winning side of the stick, he said./pp“They ended up getting a lot,” he said. /ppCouncilwoman Teresa R. Macaluso defended the way that Watertown has handled the contract negotiations, saying that the union has been unwilling to move on any proposals that the city has offered./ppThe state grant is the same kind that would have paid for the salaries of two Watertown firefighters for two years. The city of Watertown successfully obtained the funding, but City Council members rejected the grant./ppShe also defended the city not taking the SAFER grant from the state, calling it “a temporary fix.” After the funding ends, the city could not afford the three firefighter positions./pp“It’s just not sustainable,” she said. /ppAs for the SAFER grant, Watertown should have accepted the funding because “it was a no-brainer,” Mr. Daugherty said./ppMayor Joseph M. Butler Jr. couldn’t be reached for comment on Sunday. /ppThe Times looked at four other fire departments in cities similar in size to Watertown. Auburn, Rome, Elmira and Amsterdam all have paid staffs and incorporate the minimum manning standard for having a certain number of firefighters on duty at all times./ppBy the numbers/ppA comparison of all five fire departments:/ppWatertown/ppPopulation: 27,000/ppBudget: $9 million/ppStructure: 48 firefighters, 20 captains, five battalion chiefs, a deputy chief and fire chief for a staff of 75. Eight captains will be demoted to firefighters on July 1. A main fire station and two other stations./ppMinimum Manning: 15 /ppHindrances: The Black River cuts the city into two distinct parts and must be crossed at a series of bridges./ppRome/ppPopulation: 32,823/ppBudget: $6.2 million/ppStructure: About 53 firefighters, 19 lieutenants, five captains, five deputy captains and a fire chief. Two fire stations. Shut down a third building in 2008 with cuts in personnel./ppMinimum Staffing: 16/ppHindrances: Covers a large area of 75.7 square miles in the second largest geographic area for a city in the state. Also covers a business park in a former Air Force base. The Mohawk River cuts two sections of the city./ppAuburn/ppPopulation: 27,381/ppBudget: Around $8 million/ppStructure: Fire chief, four assistant fire chiefs, four captains, three lieutenants, 73 firefighters. Two fire stations. /ppMinimum Manning: 12 /ppHindrances: Auburn Correctional Facility. Routes 5 and 20 are set up in two one-way directions. The Owasco River./ppAmsterdam/ppPopulation: 18,260 /ppBudget: About $3 million/ppStructure: Fire chief, four battalion chiefs, eight lieutenants and 20 firefighters for a staff of 33./ppMinimum Manning: 8/ppHindrances: The Mohawk River splits two parts of the city with only two bridges to cross. The county seat./ppElmira/ppPopulation: 28,899/ppBudget: $4.6 million/ppStructure: Fire chief, deputy chief, four captains, two lieutenants and 53 firefighters. Three fire stations./ppMinimum Staffing: 13/ppHindrances: Elmira Correctional Facility and the county seat./p
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