By Dick Dorworth
The City of Ketchum and Local 4758, the Full Time Career Firefighters Union, contract negotiations are continuing this week. Last Thursday and Friday’s half-day open meeting between Ketchum officials and representatives failed to reach contract agreement. This is not unusual. Since 2009, when Ketchum’s full-time firefighters formed Local 4758 of the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), the two parties have managed to agree to a contract only between February 2013 and September 2014. The rest of the time has been filled with negotiations, court actions and contention. According to Local 4758’s website, at one of the first meetings in 2009, then Ketchum City Administrator Gary Marks told the firefighters it was “immoral” for them to ask for a contract.
Among the issues being negotiated is salary. According to Lieutenant/Paramedic Lara McLean, a 13-year veteran with the Ketchum Fire Department and vice president of Local 4758, Ketchum firefighters are paid about 20 percent less than firefighters in comparable cities. Other issues include a complete wellness program including physical fitness that allows firefighters to work out while on shift and opting out of the city insurance coverage.
According to McLean, this latest round of negotiation got off to “a shaky start” but she is “optimistic that we will be able to come to a productive contract.” An example of the ‘shaky start’ to which McLean refers is in part of a letter Local 4758 had read to the Ketchum City Council in executive session Monday night in response to the city’s proposed changes in the existing contract:
“Members of the City Council:
“Thank you for giving us an opportunity to update you on the progress of this year’s contract negotiations. While we would like to say the process is going well, we cannot. It has become crystal clear that Chief Elle continues to harbor a grudge against our members and our officers despite multiple assurances he is ready to move forward. Unfortunately, the City’s negotiation team came to the table on Thursday unprepared and without the authority to sign off on tentative agreements. This is bad faith negotiating. The ability to sign tentative agreements is the cornerstone of labor law and anything short of this ability is considered an unfair labor practice.”
Negotiations are continuing this week.
The IAFF was formed in 1918 and represents firefighters in the U.S. and Canada and is affiliated with the AFL-CIO in the U.S. and Canadian Labour Congress in Canada. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C., has more than 3200 locals and more than 300,000 members in every state. According to the U.S. Fire Administration, professional fire fighters protect about 85 percent of the United States’ population.