From the Riverside-Brookfiled Landmark:
It took almost a full year for the Brookfield police and the local government to finalize a new contract following the expiration of the previous agreement at the end of 2012. However, negotiating a fresh deal with Brookfield's firefighters proved to be significantly smoother. On December 9, village trustees gave unanimous approval to ratify this new three-year agreement, doing so well before the existing contract's expiration.
"The relationship between both parties was incredibly professional," noted Village Manager Riccardo Ginex. "This is quite a shift from how things used to be."
Ginex was referencing a not-so-distant time when Brookfield's firefighters reluctantly agreed to a one-year pay freeze back in 2010, rather than face potential layoffs. Following that agreement and the ensuing upheaval, the firefighters transitioned their union representation from the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) to the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF).
In 2011, the two sides reached a three-year pact that reinstated pay increases but also had firefighters contributing slightly more towards their health insurance premiums.
The most recent contract, set to conclude on December 31, 2016, keeps the firefighter's contribution to health insurance at 15% and includes annual base pay raises of 2.5%, 3%, and 2.5% over the duration of the deal. However, the contract continues to offer step raises for firefighters during their initial six years, causing salaries to rise much quicker than the base pay percentages imply.
Take, for instance, a firefighter who begins his career on January 1, 2014. Starting at $56,054, with the step raise factored in, he'll earn $61,697 in 2015, a 10% increase. By 2016, his salary will jump to $69,961, an additional 13.4% raise. By the end of the contract, in his sixth year, he'll be making $87,239. If he had started in 2010, his salary would have been $54,526, resulting in a total raise of 60%.
After six years, firefighters are no longer eligible for step raises, based on the salary schedule provided in the contract. They will then receive only the base pay raises annually.
A starting lieutenant, as of January 1, 2014, will earn $90,058. For the first two years at the rank, lieutenants are granted step raises along with base pay raises. A lieutenant starting in 2014 will earn $100,325 by January 1, 2016, marking a total increase of 11.4%. After that, lieutenants will only receive base pay raises.
One of the more significant changes in the contract, as Ginex mentioned, was a provision preventing Brookfield firefighters from working as firefighters or paramedics elsewhere when they're off-duty in Brookfield. The stated reason for this clause is to avoid injuries sustained while working for another department. Even so, the village of Brookfield would still be responsible for disability payments in such cases.
Nevertheless, Ginex explained that the IAFF also hopes to see all fire departments in the state switch to full-time staff instead of relying on part-time or on-call personnel.
Thanks, Dan.
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