Firefighters Agree To Pay Raise 'Delay'

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- With a $96-million budget deficit looming over City Hall, Columbus firefighters announced a decision Monday on whether they would accept or reject Mayor Michael Coleman's request to give up pay raises for 2009.

NBC 4's Paul Stelzer and Patrick Preston reported with the FAST FACTS Monday.

Midnight Sunday was the deadline for members of the local firefighters union to vote on Coleman's request that they forgo their raises this year.

President of IAFF Local 67 Jack Reall confirmed union members voted to "delay" 4 percent pay raises that will be due in June 2009.

Reall said firefighters will forego raises now in hopes that if conditions were to improve and funding were to become available, raises could be implemented at a later date.

Coleman still needs to identify $13 million in cuts.

Columbus firefighters did not give up their raises entirely but retained the right to ask for raises to begin again with a 30-day notice. Firefighters agreed to delay salaries without back pay, which was not exactly what the mayor originally requested.

"This is an unprecedented action by our firefighters, but it was necessary for their life safety through 2009. With no economic relief in sight and no plans for revenue generation, firefighters were concerned about fire and police layoffs that would jeopardize their safety at emergency scenes," Jack Reall, president of IAFF Local 67, said in a press release.

Union members met last Thursday and Friday to discuss their options and spent the weekend in an electronic polling exercise to provide feedback. Reall didn't offer the breakdown of yes and no votes but said 1,100 of the union's 1,531 members voted.

The decision to authorize a delay of pay raises was a difficult one, one that likely will hurt the pensions of members who are nearing retirement, Reall said.

He said the No. 1 priority that seemed to convince a majority of members to vote for the pay-raise delay was a desire to preserve current service levels to ensure the safety of firefighters and citizens.

"Our firefighters have felt left out in the cold more often in recent years and were concerned that these concessions would soon be forgotten by city leaders," Reall said.

A spokesperson for Coleman said the mayor appreciates the firefighters' efforts and willingness to "come to the table."

At a news conference later Monday afternoon, Coleman thanked the Columbus firefighters and said they stepped up once again, adding that Columbus residents should hug a firefighter because they not only save lives, they save jobs.

"I am proud of the men and women who are Columbus firefighters," Reall said. "They were able to look at this issue with the citizens and this community as their primary focus."

Coleman said the firefighters led by example, demonstrating sacrifice and responsibility.

"I pledge I will not lay off a single firefighter to fix the budget deficit," Coleman said.

The Columbus firefighters were projected to have fewer than 1,500 firefighters by the end of 2009, the fewest since 1997.

For retiring firefighters whose benefit payments are based on their income in the last years of employment, Reall said the decision could cost them substantially in years to come.

Four other city unions rejected Coleman's request, including the local chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police.

The FOP rejected the mayor's proposal last week and said Coleman's request violated negotiation rules at the city and Columbus police were seeking to agree on a new contract.

Coleman said he is saddened and disappointed that other unions rejected the request but the city is open to other unions joining with firefighters.

However, Coleman said, he would not promise that the other unions would be spared from layoffs if they were to join the firefighters.

"I can't really get into that right now. I know what I won't do. But I don't know what I will do," Coleman said.

The Fraternal Order of Police president said his members might be willing to compromise, but the problem is they don't have a raise to forgo because their contract hasn't been negotiated yet.

"They mayor's asked us to step up. We're not saying we're not going to step up, but bring it back to the table where it's supposed to be negotiated during negotiations and give us something to work with," said FOP President Jim Gilbert.

Preston reported 130 city workers received layoff notices last Friday.

Coleman previously said if unions did not accept the pay freeze, the city will layoff more workers and cut more services.

Stay with NBC 4 and refresh nbc4i.com for the latest news and information.
To submit a story idea or news tip, e-mail stories@nbc4i.com.

MORE: NBC 4 Local News | Local Crime News
NBC 4 SPORTS: Sports News, Video
NBC 4 POLITICS: Headlines, Interactives & Video