Firefighter contract agreement tentative

The town of Longboat Key and its firefighters have tentatively agreed upon a contract that expires in less than five months.

At a contract negotiation session Tuesday, May 10, town labor attorney Reynolds Allen told the firefighters the town would not impose a mandate to not count vacation and sick leave as compensation when determining a final pension payout for retired employees.

Even though the town has the right to impose that mandate, Town Manager Bruce St. Denis won’t impose it, because doing so would jeopardize the approximately $262,000 the town receives annually from the state to help fund its firefighter pension.

“We discovered that if that were effectuated, it would cause the town to lose dollars that help pay for the plan,” Allen said at the meeting. “It would be detrimental to the town, the plan and the employees in the plan.”

Allen told Longboat Key Fire District Union Vice President Brandon Desch and firefighter union attorney Jim Brantley that the town would continue to count vacation and sick leave as compensation, until the state changes its statutes or the town and firefighters can agree upon a future contract.

“We are prepared to sign the contract today and present it to the Longboat Key Town Commission upon ratification by the union,” Allen said.

Brantley, however, told St. Denis and Allen that he didn’t think the contract would be ratified unless the town agreed to one other item.

Brantley suggested that firefighters already vested in the plan be allowed to continue to have a Deferred Retirement Options Plan (DROP) option for three years instead of the reduction to two years as suggested by the town.

St. Denis agreed not to change the DROP option in the contract, which expires Sept. 30.

“But the DROP option will be subject to negotiation again for the next contract,” Allen said.

Employees in the DROP plan still work for the town but are effectively retired, and their pension payments are no longer included in the pension plan and are, instead, placed in a separate savings account.

Brantley suggested that the reasoning behind the DROP change might help the town in the long run and entice some firefighters to retire.

“We think there are three or four people who are able to retire and might be willing to enter the DROP,” Brantley said. “With pension costs being as high as they are and the plan being so small, if we can move three or four people out of the pension, I think it would be worth looking into.”

Brantley also suggested the union work together with members of town staff, possibly in a committee, to find ways to save money and reduce the $13 million in pension plan unfunded liabilities before both sides begin negotiating a long-term, three-year contract.

“I think it would be helpful for us to discuss various ideas and options to address unfunded liability and lower the town’s cost before we start negotiating again,” Brantley said.

St. Denis told Brantley and Desch he appreciated that both sides were working together.

“I think we are starting to head in the right direction,” St. Denis said.

The union, Brantley believes, will ratify the contract within the next 10 days, and St. Denis can present the contract to the commission for its final approval at its 7 p.m. Monday, June 6 regular meeting.


Contact Kurt Schultheis at [email protected].