Wesicoll negotiators agree to exchange proposals on 48/96 pilot, expedited hiring and budget impacts

The Wesicoll City Commission’s negotiating team and representatives of the Wesicoll Firefighters Association met Sept. 3 to continue talks over a new collective‑bargaining agreement, focusing on a proposed 48/96 work schedule pilot, the city’s multi‑step hiring process and the budgetary impact of the union’s proposals.

The session opened with thanks for recent fire‑suppression efforts near city hall. Chair then read the agenda and identified the item as ‘‘discussion, consideration, and negotiation for the purpose of collective bargaining’’ under chapter 174 of the local government code. A city negotiator laid out ground rules for ‘‘orderly, good‑faith bargaining’’ and warned the statutory negotiation window is nearing its end.

City staff presented a detailed 17‑step hiring timeline that includes civil‑service posting and testing, background and psychological checks, a 16‑week academy and a 10‑week EMT course. Staff said those steps — and windows for academy/EMT seats and reciprocity processes — can stretch total onboarding to roughly a year. ‘‘It’s not a simple matter of the city desiring this deciding,…