Herald News

Council rejects firefighters offer to take pay cuts to save jobs 

3/3/09

Council rejects firefighters offer to take pay cuts to save jobs

Tuesday, March 3, 2009
BY JAMES YOO

NorthJersey.com

STAFF WRITER
 

CLIFTON – The City Council rejected an offer from the firefighter’s union tonight that the union said would have avoided layoffs in the department.

KEVIN R. WEXLER / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Firefighters from Clifton and around northeast New Jersey packed the Clifton city council meeting to make it known they are against cutting 17 jobs from the city's fire department. The fire union offered a plan to take pay cuts to avoid layoffs, but the council rejected it. The city is expected to lay off a total of 60 people because of a budget shortfall.

Robert Le Duca, president of the Clifton Firemen’s Mutual Benevolent Association, said each firefighter would have taken an approximately $4,300 pay cut in 2009 to save the jobs of their 17 colleagues.

But council members said they could not agree to several items the union wanted given the economic uncertainties facing the city, including extending the contract to 2012.

“Five unions in this city and all of you blame them,” Le Duca said to the council. “When do you start to look in the mirror? Start now.”

Hundreds of people, many of them firefighters, showed up at city hall Tuesday night to see whether the City Council would accept the proposal.

Facing a fiscal crisis late last year, city officials turned to what they said is their last option: cutting jobs. A lay-off plan adopted by the council in December would cut 60 workers and eliminate 81 positions across city government, some which are part-time or vacant. It would also reduce hours for some full-time positions.

Negotiations with the unions are ongoing, officials have said.

The move would cut $4 million from the 2009 municipal budget. As of December, the city budget was $7 million more than the 2008 budget, officials said.

But the problem is a 4-percent cap on how much the city can raise the municipal tax rate, which comes to about $3.7 million in 2009.

All city employees have received offers for voluntary leaves of absence with health benefits and Clifton is switching its employee health insurance to coverage that would incur fewer out-of-network charges.

But the plan has drawn criticism from the city’s unions and its residents. Firefighters and residents have blasted plans to save $600,000 by eliminating 16 firefighters and an administrator, a move which would effectively close a firehouse.

William Lauritano, 37, a firefighter, said he could lose his home and be faced with the difficult task of telling his children they would have to move.

“The bigger issue is the safety of residents,” he said.

Le Duca, the union head, said his members wanted assurances there would be no further layoffs in exchange for the nearly 5 percent salary cut.

But council members said they could not guarantee a contract extension or that there would not be any more layoffs.

“It’s tough to sit up here and say we have to hang tough,” said Councilman Joseph Cupoli.

Even though the council has rejected the union’s proposal, council members said they still planned to hold further talks about the proposed layoffs.

Cupoli, along with others on the council, asked the firefighters to continue to negotiate with the city.

“In order to avoid layoffs, in order to save jobs, please work with us to save jobs,” he said.

E-mail: yoo@northjersey.com

http://www.northjersey.com/passaic/Firefighters_union_tries_to_head_off_layoffs_in_Clifton.html