Firefighter's Labor Union Fight for their Pay Amidst City Budget Cuts

Since the start of the recession, there have been hundreds of businesses declaring bankruptcy resulting in the removal of thousands of jobs in the U.S. With an unemployment rate which stood at 9.6%, it is now wonder that the U.S. government is facing a daunting task of saving the economy and getting the country out of the recession. Government employees are perhaps the most affected by the crisis as thousands of them are being removed from their post every week in response to the proposed budget cuts within the government.

And just recently, firefighters were in danger of being removed from their jobs or at least receive less compensation and benefits. This came as a direct result of the budget cuts and the lack of funds by U.S. states. A recent survey conducted by the National League of Cities reported that over one-fifth of U.S. cities have reopened contracts in order to reduce the compensation of public employees which includes firefighters. For example, official in the city of Miami has approved across-the-board cuts amounting to $76.9 million which directly affects the salary and benefits of public employees.

The cities of Los Angeles, Milwaukee and Philadelphia have different approach to the situation. They prefer temporarily shutting down fire stations or putting several fire trucks out of service. Last month, Philadelphia started the closure of several fire stations and was intended to save over $3.8 million. It is interesting to mention that the 2008 municipal bankruptcy of Vallejo, Calif. was directly blamed for excessive compensation of firefighters. Before the town went busted, the average firefighter’s pay along with its benefits was pegged at $193,000 which is relatively high.

The Obama administration skipped the June 2009 U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting in Providence in order to please the International Association of fire fighters which is a strong and influential labor union with 300,000 members. It was reported that Harold Schaitberger, the Labor Union’s President, placed a call to the office of Vice-President Biden indicating that the union plans to stage some protest in support of Local 799’s six-year contract fight with the city.

Chris Lehane, a Democratic political consultant, said that the firefighter’s endorsement is one of the most influential and most sought after in the labor front. He added that these unions can provide political candidates with thousands of volunteers and financial backing during their campaign. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, the IAFF’s political action committee has contributed over $2.7 million to federal candidates during the 2008 election cycle.

Schaitberger is now pushing on a legislation that will require U.S. states and municipalities to allow collective bargaining rights to police, firefighters and emergency medical personnel. Schaitberger also stated that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has already assured him that he'll try to pass the measure unto senate. One thing is certain; Schaitberger is fighting against city budget cuts in order to protect the pay and pensions of firefighters.