Firefighters mulling over contract offer

Is an offer to boost Longboat Key firefighter/paramedic and lieutenant salaries with an additional $312,546 over three years enough for the Longboat Key Fire Rescue Union to sign a new three-year contract?

Not yet. But Longboat Key Fire Rescue Lt. Jason Berzowski, the union’s lead negotiator during contract discussions, said the town and the union “are very close” to agreeing on a new contract.

“The membership is still evaluating the offer,” Berzowski said. “We will meet with our membership again before requesting another negotiation session to discuss where we are and what we need to be able to agree to a new contract.”

The union negotiation team expressed satisfaction Oct. 6 with wage offer increases ranging from 1.5% to 15.78% for firefighter/paramedics and 3.96% to 27.11% during the first year of the new contract.

But a sticking point for the union is reducing or eliminating the Florida Retirement System (FRS) pension contributions firefighter/paramedics make above the mandated 3% contribution required by the FRS.

A FRS retirement plan the union agreed to as part of the last contract calls for union members investing 11% of their pay into the pension plan on top of a 3% mandated FRS investment required by the plan. Longboat Key Fire Rescue is the only department in the state that pays more than the 3% state-mandated pension contribution minimum.

“All they have to do to make Longboat Key competitive is to pay their fair share of the pension like every other department in FRS does and pay us competitively,” said Longboat Key Fire Rescue Union Vice President Keith Tanner.

But if the fire union comes back to the negotiation table with a request that its pension contribution above the 3% contribution be eliminated altogether, it’s doubtful a contract will be reached.

“All they have to do to make Longboat Key competitive is to pay their fair share of the pension like every other department in FRS does and pay us competitively.”

– Keith Tanner, Longboat Key Fire Resuce Union Vice President

Town Labor Attorney Reynolds Allen urged the union to tread cautiously when the two sides meet again.

“There’s nothing wrong in you trying and our trying,” Allen said Oct. 6, at a negotiation session. “But if you come back and tell us you want to pay for it all (except the mandated 3%), that’s a big problem that won’t fly.”

Allen said he and Town Manager Dave Bullock “can’t sell the commission on eliminating all your contributions.”

Bullock said he’s hopeful the two sides can come to an agreement.

“They asked me to wait and give them time to further discuss the offer,” Bullock said. “I heard the pension was still a sticking point, but they need more time to go over it. We’ll sit down with them when they’re ready.”