Firefighter Labor Contract Rejected Due to Costs, Arbitration Next

Call it a sign of the times. Two new labor contracts pertaining to firefighters, clerks, engineers, and other town employees were rejected by the Representative Town Meeting on Tuesday night upon concerns of the proposed raises and no changes to the costly pension plan.

Next stop is likely arbitration, a potentially risky move that could end up saving taxpayers a substantial amount of money. Or the state arbitrator, a third party with the final say in the contracts, could side with the unions, undoing the intentions of the RTM members who voted against the contracts.

The contracts were strongly opposed, with a 9-26 vote for the firefighters' contract and a 11-22 vote with one abstention for the municipal employees' contract. The votes were tempered with praise of the employees affected, along with dismay at the dire financial situation forcing the cost-cutting measures.

"I know the people in this town work hard and I'm very supportive of them in general, but I'll tell you what: if this gets approved, there's going to be less of you working next year," said RTM member Kevin Green, District 9. "It's just not going to happen any other away."

For the Westport Muncipal Employees Union, which covers more than 50 employees, there was a proposed wage freeze in the first year of the contract, a 1.25 percent increase in the second and 2.75 percent increases, with step movements, in the final two. For the firefighters, there was also a proposed wage freeze for the current fiscal year followed by a 3.25 percent increases and two consecutive 2.75 percent increases in the final years.

In both rejected contracts, health insurance costs would increase, but the pensions would remain unaffected.

"Yes, they lay themselves on the line for us," Wendy Batteau, District 8, said about firefighters. "I would prefer to see the full complement of firefighters on every truck and what I worry about is that when it comes to [budget deadlines in] May, push is going to come to shove and shove is going to come to some firefighters or some other necessary thing being cut."

Speaking as a taxpayer and a firefighter, Fire Inspector Nathaniel Gibbons urged the RTM to approve the contract. He had researched the pensions for firefighters in nearby comparable towns, and said that Westport's is among the worst.

"You got to realize that the so-called golden handshake in Westport is not golden at all," he said. "It's by far the worst. We pay the most and we get the least."

Correction: The vote listed for the muncipal employees' contract was off by one vote and has been corrected.