Fire Union Threatens Lawsuit Over Layoffs

Fire Union Threatens Lawsuit Over Layoffs

The president of the city firefighter union told GoLocalProv last night that the union is prepared to sue the city if it decides to lay off firefighters.

City officials last week aired the possibility of layoffs as a way of achieving $6 million in savings in the department budget—if the union could not agree to concessions.

Yesterday, the city disclosed details of how it would proceed with layoffs. Under the plan, 60 firefighters would lose their positions and the department would move to a three-shift schedule and a 56-hour work week, according to union President Paul Doughty. Firefighters currently work in four shifts and turn in 42-hour weeks.

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But the plan could land the city in a costly court battle. “We think there’s some legal issues with the city unilaterally implementing layoffs and we will pursue them,” Doughty said.

Doughty said the union is still in negotiations with the city and that there are “other options on the table,” such as reductions in staff benefits and the number of employees. He declined to go into detail.

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