Firefighters’ union, city reach one-year deal without arbitration

The city has reached a collective bargaining agreement with the firefighters’ union, marking the first time in two decades a deal has been reached between the parties without arbitration.

The one-year contract between the City of Calgary and the International Association of Firefighters, Local 255, includes a 2.5 per cent wage increase for 2017, according to the city.

It follows a recent one-year collective bargaining agreement reached by the Calgary Police Association and the city, which also includes a 2.5 per cent pay increase and spans only a single year — a time frame both the firefighter and police unions say is highly unusual.

Mike Carter, president of the firefighters’ union, welcomed the new one-year deal and said it makes sense for everyone involved amid the ongoing economic downturn.

“It was something the city came to us with, on a one-year deal to kind of match what the police association got,” Carter said. “From our perspective, we definitely recognize the challenges that the City of Calgary is in economically.

“The membership and the association leadership felt it was a very fair offer.”

Carter said the new agreement is the first freely negotiated contract between the city and firefighters in two decades.

“We’ve been in arbitration for the past 20 years. This is the first freely negotiated contract in that time frame,” he said.

“We’ve gone through mediation and ultimately arbitration for the past 20 years just because of the differences between the two parties.”

A city spokeswoman said via email the new contract is still in draft form because the city is waiting on feedback from the firefighters’

From our perspective, we definitely recognize the challenges that the City of Calgary is in economically.

association and it will be posted online in the coming weeks.

The recent one-year deals between the city and the police and firefighters’ union will expire in early 2018, at the same time as agreements between the city and several other unions.

That includes the agreement with the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 38, city hall’s largest union, whose 4,200 members received a 12.5 per cent pay hike over four years including a four per cent pay raise in 2017.