Court Rules Town Must Enter Arbitration With Firefighters

The town and firefighters sat down for an arbitration session last week following a decision by the Supreme Court to not stay (delay) arbitration, in the ongoing legal battle over the town’s decision to institute 24-hour shifts for firefighters.

Firefighters are calling the ruling a positive step. The town, meanwhile, said the ruling will not affect the ultimate outcome of the case. Both sides agree the continued legal proceedings will cost taxpayers.

“What we hate is that it’s the taxpayers that are going to pay for the awful decisions,” said Ray Furtado, president of NK Firefighters, Local 1651.

“Our proposal is actually to return us to the rates of pay from 2009. We’re very confident that in front of a neutral panel we’ll be successful,” he said, referring to the arbitration panel.

The town imposed 24-hour shifts on firefighters in January 2012, in a cost-saving move. Under the new system, firefighters work 24 hours on, 48 hours off. Before that, they had worked two 10-hour days and two 10-hour nights, with four days off.

Lawyer for the town Dan Kinder said the move has saved the town $1 million in overtime costs this year.

Firefighters argue the new system requires them to work, over a two-week period, an average of 72 hours a week, up from 42 hours a week under the old system.

The town did grant firefighters a 10 percent pay increase, but Furtado said that increase gets eaten up in the extra hours worked because pay is amortized over the work week.

For instance, he said, a firefighter making around $28 an hour before is now making roughly $21 an hour now.

Kinder said the case hinges on a legal issue – the town is arguing that the union failed to notify the town about its desire to enter into arbitration within the required time period (120 days before the last day money can be appropriated), thereby relinquishing its right to arbitration.

Furtado said the town’s decision to change the firefighters’ working hours outside of negotiations violates the firefighters arbitration act.

Kinder disagreed.

“The Supreme Court has said in order for it to avail itself of any rights through the law, the union must give notice to the town 120 days by the last day money can be appropriated,” Kinder said. “It missed it by 56 days.” He referred to a case in Tiverton in which the union missed the last day by only one day, the Supreme Court said it had no rights.

As for the issue of firefighters having to work longer hours for the same pay, Kinder said most communities the size of North Kingstown are served by volunteer departments and that the majority of other comparable communities that do have paid firefighters follow the 24-hour shift rule.

“The job of firefighters is largely to wait to be called,” he said. “They go and shop for groceries on duty. They’ll sleep a full night, barring a call for service. They work out, they recreate, they plan their litigation against the taxpayers all while on duty.”

Kinder said the town will participate in the arbitration process in good faith. Three more sessions are scheduled for July July 11, 24, and 25. It’s unclear if additional sessions will be necessary as both sides to make their case to the court-appointed arbitrator.

Meanwhile, a ruling by the Supreme Court on the town’s move to force 24-hour shifts is not expected until next year at the earliest, Kinder said.