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Bradenton council ratifies three-year firefighter contracts, funds advanced life-support training
Summary
The council approved two labor agreements covering roughly 70 rank-and-file firefighters and five supervisors that include provisions to train personnel in advanced life support and staffing adjustments; the contracts were ratified 5-0.
Bradenton— The City Council on March 25 ratified two three-year labor contracts with the Sun Coast Professional Firefighters and a supervisory unit, agreements the administration said will expand training and staffing to deliver advanced life-support care from city fire apparatus.
City administrative staff told the council the agreements cover a rank-and-file unit of roughly 70 firefighters and a supervisory unit of about five, and include provisions for professional development and advanced life-support (ALS) training. "The citizens when they're having a medical emergency, they want the most advanced life support they can have as fast as they can get it," Mr. Rob Perry, the city administrator, said during the consent-agenda discussion.
The contracts, described by administration and union representatives as the result of lengthy negotiations, include implementation steps to place ALS capabilities on fire trucks beginning in the third year of the agreements, subject to medical-director approval and credentialing. Council members praised the bargaining process and the contracts' effort to retain competitive pay and modernize service delivery.
Union representatives were introduced at the meeting; council members thanked the negotiators and the city said ratification votes by membership were "overwhelmingly" supportive. The vote to approve the consent agenda items including the contracts carried 5-0.
The agreements will remain subject to any detailed implementation timelines and medical-direction sign-offs required for advanced medical procedures; the administration said it will return with operational details and necessary certifications as work proceeds.
(Approved: 5-0)
