Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Safety Staffing topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
County resident urges higher firefighter pay as fire committee reports six openings
Summary
A former county building official and mother of a Bradley County firefighter urged commissioners to 'honor' firefighters and criticized a remark that compared pay requests to children asking for allowances; commissioners earlier heard the fire committee report there are six open firefighter positions and that a pay/budget plan will be provided before budget season.
A Bradley County resident urged the commission to respect and increase pay for county firefighters and criticized an earlier remark described in the record as comparing firefighters’ pay requests to children asking parents for allowances.
Tina Bishop, identified in the record as a former Bradley County building official and mother of a county firefighter, told commissioners: “They are trained professionals who are willing to go into a burning, terrible situation in order to rescue you and your family.” Bishop said many county jobs, including firefighting, do not pay enough to sustain a family and cited pay differences with the city of Cleveland, saying the city pays roughly $10–$12 more for similar roles.
Earlier in the meeting, Commissioner Mike Hughes reported the fire committee met last week and identified six open positions that he said should be filled by January 2026; Hughes also said the fire chief will prepare a pay/budget plan to present to the committee prior to formal budget deliberations.
No formal action or vote on pay was taken at this meeting; the transcript shows the committee will present recommended budget information to commissioners in advance of budget season.
