Union rep says Longview ignored firefighters' offer
Tuesday, February 1, 2005 7:32 AM PST
By Tony Lystra
Printable version
E-mail this articleA senior firefighters' union official said Monday that a three-year impasse with the city of Longview over the labor group's contract had been unnecessary and that the union had offered an 11th-hour deal to avoid arbitration.
Randy Bradshaw, who heads Longview's International Association of Firefighters Local 828, said his union proposed a 3 percent raise for both 2003 and 2004 late in the contract negotiations. But the city declined, he said, and the matter was sent to an independent arbitrator.
The offer, Bradshaw said, came shortly after mediated talks had broken down, and the parties were on the verge of taking the contract to binding arbitration, a process by which a neutral party resolves labor disputes.
After conducting hearings for three days in June, arbitrator Michael H. Beck issued his ruling this month, awarding the union a retroactive increase of 4.7 percent for 2003 and 2.5 percent raises for 2004 and 2005.
Bradshaw called the arbitrator's decision "a fair outcome." But he said, "If the city would have settled the contract, they could have paid us less and avoided paying for an arbitrator."
"I think it's a sad state of affairs that we're in that kind of situation, that we're ... not getting contracts settled and negotiating for so long," Bradshaw continued. "Hopefully that's an abnormality, and that's behind us."
On Monday, Vicki Taylor, the city's human resources director, who was closely involved with the negotiations, declined to comment specifically on the union's alleged 11th-hour offer.
"Both parties are bound not to discuss anything that happens in mediation because that is considered confidential," she said.
But, she added that the union "never formally proposed an economic package that was less than 8.8 percent."
The matter has raised some dispute about labor rules. Taylor said it would be against fair practices for the union to lower its proposed wages, then increase the figure when arbitration began. But Bradshaw disputed that, saying the union was free to make a "what-if?" proposal before arbitration. Once arbitration formally started, the union's position defaulted to its initial offer of 8.8 percent, he said.
The arbitrator's decision put the pinch on the city. Longview officials had budgeted for raises of 2.5 percent in the 2005-2006 budget. However, because Beck gave firefighters a retroactive 4.7 percent increase for 2003, the city will struggle to make up the difference during an already tight budget year, officials said.
Finance Director Kurt Sacha said Monday that authorities have not yet calculated exactly what the arbitrator's decision will cost the city.
In fairness, Bradshaw acknowledged that the city's revenues are largely flat. And he pointed out the dispute also had been about issues besides wages, such as vacation time and the ability for firefighters to trade shifts.
He estimated the arbitrator's costs at $10,000, which the city and union will split. In addition, he said both parties spent thousands of dollars on attorneys.
The last time the city and its firefighters had resorted to binding arbitration was 1986.
Until early January, the city's firefighters had worked without a contract since January 2003 and without a raise since 2002. Firefighters initially had asked for an increase of around 8.8 percent, which, they argued, would bring local salaries in line with comparable jurisdictions throughout the state. At the time, firefighters earned between $44,208 and $65,000 each year.
City officials, meanwhile, proposed raises of around 2.5 percent.
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