Members of the Tallahassee firefighters’ union want to hear from their city commissioners before signing a new contract.
The contract negotiations have dragged on for more than a year. Last (Tuesday) night the firefighters considered a proposal recommended earlier this month by a special magistrate. The city has already signed on to the plan, but it’s unclear when the terms of the agreement would kick in.
The firefighters say they won’t agree to the proposal unless their raises are retroactive to October 1st, the beginning of the budget year they’ve been negotiating.
“Our members have gone through this process without having the commissioners as a whole weigh in on it," said union president Joey Davis. "And I think it’s reasonable of many of our members to have a problem with not knowing where their commission stands on these issues.”
Such a meeting would put heat on Mayor Pro Tem Curtis Richardson, who’s up for re-election. He says he’s always supported the firefighters, and they’ve long endorsed him. But Richardson is the swing vote on the commission in terms of giving the firefighters a raise, and now they’re endorsing his opponent.
