City, firefighters reach quick agreement

May 13, 2008 11:51 am

— By TESA CULLI
tesa.culli@register-news.com
MT. VERNON — The city and members of the Mt. Vernon Professional Firefighters International Association of Fire Fighters Local 738 have reached a tentative agreement, less than two weeks after their contract expired.
“We’re finalizing the contract language and will be going to them for final ratification,” City Manager Ron Neibert said. “Once ratified by both parties, we’ll have almost a full four-year agreement in place.”
All contracts between union personnel and the city expire on April 30, but this is the first time in many years the MVFD contract has been negotiated and approved within the same year.
In April 2006, the department’s last contract was ratified after two years of negotiations, and was made retroactive to 2004, according to Register-News Archives. It was the last of the city’s contracts to be agreed upon. The last contract went to arbitration over health insurance issues.
Neibert said the new contract gives the firefighters 3 percent increases annually over the next four years — the same increases which have been negotiated and ratified by city workers in the IBEW, Laborers and Teamsters unions.
“We’d like to have the contract ready for ratification by the council at the next meeting,” Neibert said. “But it usually takes a little longer. We’ll probably have it the meeting after.”
Neibert said the city is still in negotiations with the Fraternal Order of Police, and have a tentative meeting scheduled for next week to work on remaining contractual issues.