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Brentwood firefighters press Board of Aldermen for meaningful collective bargaining
Summary
Union leaders and Brentwood firefighters told the Board of Aldermen they have been negotiating without a contract for nearly three years and urged the city to direct negotiating teams to bargain in good faith to preserve recruitment, retention and service quality.
Corey Hogan, vice president of IAFF Local 2665, told the Brentwood Board of Aldermen on Oct. 7 that firefighters have sought a collective-bargaining agreement for nearly three years and urged the Board to "give direction tonight to engage in some meaningful bargaining protocols." Hogan said the union represents firefighters and paramedics across the region and asked the city to provide a reliable path to contract negotiations.
Dennis Murray, president of IAFF Local 2665, warned the board that the union may file unfair-labor-practice charges if the city does not set negotiating dates and engage in good-faith bargaining, saying such charges ‘‘are going to cost the city money.’’ Guy Sanfilippo, a Ward 1 resident and professional firefighter and paramedic, said the department risks becoming a "revolving door," with candidates and experienced employees leaving for higher pay elsewhere.
Darren Chavez, a shop steward with the Brentwood Fire Department representing the Professional Firefighters of Brentwood, said the union has submitted a "30-plus page collective bargaining agreement" but received only a one-page memorandum of understanding from the city. Chavez asked the Board to "direct your negotiating team to sit down with us in good faith" and to honor requests for placement of tenured employees in time-and-position steps for pay. "We are asking this board to come together, direct your negotiating team, to sit down with us in good faith," he said.
The Board did not take formal action on bargaining protocols during the meeting. Earlier in the same session the Board adopted a citywide compensation plan and a separate ordinance setting the city administrator's salary; union speakers said those measures underscore the need for negotiated agreements that protect senior employees' placement.
The public-comments period featured multiple direct appeals from union leaders and firefighters for formal bargaining dates and for the Board to ensure that long-serving personnel receive appropriate placement under any new pay structure. No city official offered a formal response to the specific unfair-labor-practice warnings during the public-comment exchanges.
