Appeals court panel sides with HFD union

Ruling clears the way for a judge to set pay for firefighters, pending other legal action by city

A panel of appellate court judges on Thursday rejected the city’s attempt to strike down a key provision of state law that governs how police and firefighters negotiate their wages and benefits, dealing a blow to Mayor Sylvester Turner in his long-running dispute with the Houston fire union.

Barring a city appeal, the ruling clears the way for a judge to set Houston firefighters’ pay for up to a year and compensate them for “past losses.”

Firefighters have received raises of just 3 percent since 2011, after rejecting offers they say included too many concessions. Voters in 2018 approved a ballot measure granting firefighters pay “parity” to police of similar rank and seniority, but a district judge ruled the measure unconstitutional.

Thursday’s ruling came in a case that arose in June 2017 after Turner and the Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association failed to agree on a new contract through collective bargaining.

The union sued the city, claiming Turner’s administration failed to negotiate in good faith. As part of that lawsuit, the firefighters invoked a provision of state law that allows a state district judge to set their pay after Turner declined to enter contract arbitration. The city responded by arguing it was unconstitutional for judges to determine the pay of firefighters and police officers.

Justices Ken Wise, Charles A. Spain and Meagan Hassan of Texas’ 14th Court of Appeals sided against the city, ruling the provision does not run afoul of the Texas Constitution separation of powers clause that prohibits one branch of government — the judiciary, in this case — from exercising power that belongs to another branch.

The justices also rejected the city’s argument that state lawmakers did not set specific enough guidelines for courts to determine firefighters’ compensation. Texas law requires public employers to give firefighters pay that is “substantially equal” to “comparable employment in the private sector.”

“The Legislature chose sufficiently detailed but not too confining language to account for the many different circumstances affecting compensation and other conditions of employment,” the justices wrote in their opinion, in which they also ordered the city

to cover the fire union’s legal fees.

City Attorney Arturo Michel said the Turner administration “respectfully disagrees” with the ruling, but has yet to decide whether to appeal.

“The city is evaluating its options and will decide in due time whether to ask the Texas Supreme Court to address this matter or present evidence to the trial court in support of just, fair, and affordable compensation to Houston’s firefighters,” Michel said in a statement. “The city has continually been, and remains, committed to negotiating in good faith with the union.”

Throughout the legal battle, Houston fire union officials have said the city’s legal argument amounts to an attempt to rule collective bargaining unconstitutional by removing the teeth behind it — in this case, judicial enforcement when the city declines arbitration.

Fire union president Marty Lancton said he was grateful for the ruling Thursday.

“It should be a signal for the mayor to end the vindictive, taxpayer-funded legal campaign against Houston firefighters and our families,” Lancton said. “This ruling provides the city with an opportunity to reverse course and resolve our disputes.”

The court decision came roughly a week after Houston City Council voted 14-3 to spend an additional $92,000 on attorney fees in the case, on top of the $455,000 approved in 2017. Council members Tarsha Jackson, Michael Kubosh and Amy Peck opposed the spending.

Turner has said he plans to increase firefighters’ pay in next year’s city budget without holding contract negotiations or otherwise involving the fire union in the process. The mayor is scheduled next week to announce his proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year, which begins July 1. The budget is subject to City Council approval.

The 14th Court of Appeals separately is considering the firefighters’ appeal of a district judge’s ruling in May 2019 that invalidated the pay “parity” measure, known as Proposition B.

Meanwhile, the Texas Legislature is considering a bill, HB 2087, that would require Houston officials to enter binding arbitration with the fire union if the two sides reached an impasse in collective bargaining. Turner has declined firefighters’ requests for arbitration, arguing the process would inappropriately “leave it up to someone else to determine the fate of Houston taxpayers.”

Last year, San Antonio became the first major city in Texas to reach a collective bargaining agreement through arbitration, when a panel settled a sixyear stalemate between San Antonio firefighters and the city.