The City Council is being asked to approve the agreement for the renewal of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF) - Local 521 and the City of Billings. The contract was approved by Local 521 on October 4 and 5.  If approved by City Council, then the contract will be effective July 1, 2023, through June 30, 2026.

The contract was tentatively approved by City Council on June 12, 2023.  However, Firefighters did not approve that tentative agreement, and after reallocation of wages to various Fire positions another vote was taken and was approved on October 4 and 5, 2023.  The reallocation of wages did not cost the City any additional funds from the initial City Council approval.  In addition, the initial CBA language changes approved on June 12, 2023, by City Council remained unchanged except the following relating to Article VI, Special Certification Pay, subsection g.:

(1) New Fire Instructors shall hold an IFSAC/Proboard Fire Instructor 1 to receive Instructor Certification pay. Current instructors as of June 30, 2023, shall be allowed to continue receiving instructor certification pay until such a time the department offers certification class for IFSAC/Proboard Fire Instructor 1.  The course availability will be discussed at JLMC.

(2) Team coordinators approved by the fire chief shall be recognized for a third certification while serving as team lead.

h. Beginning July 1, 2025 – Certification pay shall increase to $100 per certification (up to $200 for (2) certifications). AEMT shall count as 1 certification upon approval of Assistant Chief of EMS.

Even though the costs of implementing the contract remained unchanged, staff decided to err on the side of caution, and bring this forward to City Council for final approval.  In addition, please see the attached June 12, 2023, City Council Staff Memo for additional details.
 

City Council may:

• Approve the proposed contract containing changes to pay by firefighter positions (Exhibit A) from your initial approval on June 12, 2023;
• Deny approval of the contract, forcing negotiations to resume.

Staff recommends the City Council approve the collective bargaining agreement between Local 521-IAFF and the City of Billings, effective July 1, 2023.

The costs of implementing this contract are the same as approved on June 12, 2023, and may be referenced in the attached June 12, 2023, City Council staff memo.  The pay matrix that was tentatively approved on June 12, 2023, is also attached.