- Video shows how much of a pay increase Friends of Tallahassee Firefighters are calling for once the current one-year contract disputes are resolved.
- The group wants $60,000 base pay, an 8 percent raise and a shorter work week included in a three-year labor contract.
- Watch now to see how that stacks up to the current offer that will be mediated by a magistrate Wednesday.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
A bold statement from Tallahassee leaders on behalf of the city's firefighters.
I'm Alberto Camargo in the College Town neighborhood.
Behind me are the Metropolitan apartments on West Pensacola Street, where off-duty firefighters responded to a fire last week.
It all happened with the backdrop of ongoing pay disputes between the firefighters union and the city of Tallahassee.
Tuesday, community leaders stand behind fire workers to demand significant pay increases in the future.
Friends of Tallahassee Firefighters.
That's the name of a group including Leon County Commissioner Bill Proctor, Tallahassee Firefighters union president Joey Davis and former Tallahassee mayor Dot Inman-Johnson.
Together they announced a three-year contract proposal to go into effect after the current one-year negotiations are resolved.
"We want $60,000 to be the starting point for any fireman. And we want an escalated scale of 8% for every category of fire worker to be paid in that three-year contract."
The current pay dispute has been going for a year with over 20 meetings between the city of Tallahassee and the firefighters union.
A magistrate will hear both sides Wednesday morning and is expected to recommend a mediation.
"We've lost 11 firefighters over the last six months due to these issues alone."
Davis says the proposed pay structure would pay Tallahassee firefighters more than surrounding counties.
It would also bring pay closer to what Tallahassee police officers are paid.
Inman-Johnson says there should be equal pay for both sets of first responders.
"If my house is on fire, I want these brave firefighters at my home, protecting my life."
I reached out to the city for comment on the ideas Tuesday, but did not hear back.
However, in our previous reporting, Fire Chief Gene Sanders told ABC27:
"During the course of negotiations, the priority has been on Firefighters, with the City providing multiple proposals for compensation increases that are now up to 8.6% within the rank of Firefighter, which is far above an average offer."
That 8.6% includes reducing the pension contribution by 2.5% across all ranks, but pay increases to only firefighters and engineers, not lieutenants or captains and battalion chiefs.
The city commission will meet Wednesday at City Hall, with firefighter supporters encouraged to wear red.
Regardless of what the magistrate recommends, the city commission still has the option to reject any or all parts of the mediation.
In College Town, Alberto Camargo, ABC27.
