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Council divided on timing of two full‑time fire hires and pension changes
Summary
Council members debated whether to add two full‑time firefighters, raise pay and shift pension plans; staff warned pension and staffing changes are linked and that pension shifts likely require full‑time hires, while some members said hiring now is premature.
DAYTON — The Aug. 12 budget work session included a sustained debate over fire staffing, pay and pension options after staff presented a proposal to move the department away from a paid-on-call model.
Council members pressed staff to clarify costs. Speaker 3 asked why the packet showed a $143,000 line when two full‑time hires were described elsewhere as costing roughly "$205,000 in total." Speaker 2 said $205,000 was the gross cost for the two positions but that offsets — reduced paid-on-call hours, operational savings and a change in relief‑association payments — reduce the net impact.
Discussion turned to wages and pension models. Speaker 5 proposed increasing paid-on-call wages from $17 to $30 per hour; staff and others noted the pension structure differs substantially between the current fire-relief lump‑sum model and a PERA-style pension, and that shifting pension arrangements appears to require converting positions to full time. Speaker 6 stressed recruitment and retention concerns and warned that hiring too fast risks losing existing volunteers if schedules and commitments change.
The council did not take formal action. Members were divided: several favored the hires and improved compensation to sustain response capacity, while others preferred delaying the two full‑time hires at least a year and looking for other savings in capital or operations.
