Escambia County, IAEP negotiators to resubmit tentative agreement after failed ratification

Negotiators for Escambia County and the IAEP agreed Jan. 28, 2025, to forward a tentative agreement (TA) to the county administrator for signature and to ask the bargaining unit to hold another ratification vote, after an earlier ratification attempt did not pass.

The session centered on language that had been removed from the TA and concerns from members that the change would eliminate a COVID-related pay provision. Nikki Powell, HR director for Escambia County, said the county removed the specific language to preserve flexibility for allocating limited raises, not to rescind pay already approved.

"The intent was not to take that away," Nikki Powell, HR director, said. "We removed the language to allow us to come to the table and say, hey, this was approved, but the amount is maybe X, and maybe you want to apply 5% to paramedics and 2% to EMTs." Powell said budget constraints often leave only small increases available in some years.

A bargaining-unit representative acknowledged responsibility for the failed ratification and said membership concern focused on the perception that COVID-related compensation was being removed. "I'll take a little bit of the heat on the ratification... I believe it might have been a failure on my part to fully explain it to the bargaining unit," the union representative said.

Powell described a recurring budget uncertainty tied to an "FRS entry" that posts late in the year and can create a multi-million-dollar unfunded liability for the county. "In around March of every year, there's also an FRS entry that hits. It's the unfunded liability, and it's a couple $1,000,000 every time it hits," Powell said, noting that many EMS positions are classified as hazard positions and carry a higher FRS rate.

Negotiators agreed that removing the COVID-specific language was intended to let the parties discuss how any approved funds would be distributed across classifications if the Board of County Commissioners provided one-time or across-the-board funds. They also confirmed that, if funds become available, the parties can negotiate a memorandum of understanding (MOU) as they have in previous years.

As a next step, Powell said she would take the TA to the county administrator for signature. Kristen Ewell of the county attorney's office was expected to send documentation to the bargaining unit so members could be asked to hold another ratification vote. No formal vote or county commission action occurred during the session.

Negotiators indicated they would continue to coordinate with the county administrator and the bargaining unit; no implementation dates were set during the meeting.