Newton firefighters to receive $6.1 million in retro pay and benefits

Newton firefighters are expected to receive $6.1 million in retroactive salary and benefits pay from the city thanks to a binding collective bargaining award from a state labor panel, according to a memo to the city's Board of Aldermen from Mayor David B. Cohen.

The Aug. 6 ruling settled a five-year dispute between the firefighter's union and city. Cohen filed a request today asking the Board of Aldermen to appropriate the money.

"As is typical in an arbitrator's decision, there are no absolute winners and losers," Cohen wrote in a memo to the board today. "Both sides in this dispute gained some of what we wanted and both sides failed to gain some of what we wanted ... it is now time for us to move forward."

Along with five years of retroactive raises, the contract determination by the Joint Labor-Management Committee gave firefighters money for education, set aside a request for random drug testing on firefighters and eliminated a controversial clause requiring firefighters to present a doctor's note confirming each time they or family members are ill.

The award rejected requests by the firefighters for an additional training stipend and an additional union pay step, however.

The contract is only valid until June 2009, and both sides will sit down again in January to begin the collective bargaining process on a new contract.

Tom Lopez, spokesman for the firefighter's union, has declined to comment until the board appropriates the money. The board is expected to take up the matter at its Sept. 2 meeting.

-- Rachana Rathi