Published: June 30, 2009 11:08 am      

Council gives OK to raises

They’ll be issuing some checks at City Hall.

Following a closed-door session during a special meeting on Monday night, the city council reconvened in open session and took action that will result in a 4 percent across-the-board pay raise for members of the firefighters’ union.

The agreement is for the 2008-2009 Fiscal Year — which ends today. It’s retroactive to July 1, 2008, the day the current fiscal year began.

“I imagine they’ll be cutting some checks at City Hall today,” Mayor Kevin Priddle said.

After the closed session Monday evening, the council agreed to a memorandum of understanding regarding negotiations with the city firefighters’ union.

The council then authorized Priddle to enter into an agreement with the International Association of Firefighters Local No. 2284. Priddle said the raise will cost $69,506.

If the city’s and the union’s negotiators had fail to reach agreement on a contract, then both sides could have faced a costly arbitration procedure.

Now, with the last of the outstanding contract issues resolved for the fiscal year which ends today, negotiators can work toward and agreement for the 2009-2010 Fiscal Year, which begins Wednesday.