By THOMAS GRILLO
LYNN — It took nearly five months of arbitration, but city firefighters won a new four-year contract that calls for a 9.5 percent raise, sources told The Item.
The $2.5 million deal was settled late Wednesday by the Joint Labor-Management Committee, a quasi-public agency that negotiates collective bargaining disputes between municipalities and public employees. Under the terms of the agreement, the firefighters will receive a retroactive 2 percent raise for each of fiscal years 2015 and 2016, a 2.5 percent hike for 2017, another 2 percent for 2018 and on June 30, 2018 they will collect another 1 percent.
Mayor Judith Flanagan Kennedy had offered firefighters 8 percent last year, similar to the police contract that was settled last summer. But Lynn Firefighters Local 739 sought a 10 percent increase over the the life of the four-year contract.
While the firefighters got less than they asked for, they received a better deal than the $2.2 million four-year police contract that was settled in August.
The 8 percent retroactive police agreement provided a 1 percent boost for 2014, a 2 percent increase for 2015, 2016 and 2017 and a 1 percent raise for 2018.
Kennedy declined to comment.
“I am still crunching the numbers and reviewing the decision,” she said.
Arbitration rules do not allow the mayor to reject the settlement.
The city council is expected to take up the matter next month. The panel is free to deny the deal and send the parties back to arbitration, but it is unlikely the 11-member board will do so, say observers.
The decision is likely to put more stress on an already tight city budget.
Peter Caron, the city’s chief financial officer, said it’s unclear how these raises will be funded. The mayor has 30 days to submit the contract to the city council for their approval.
None of the leadership of either union were willing to talk about the new contract. Michael O’Connor, the firefighter’s union president, did not return a call seeking comment. Vice President Mario Lopez and former president Matthew Reddy also declined to comment.
Lt. William Sharpe, president of the Lynn Police Association, could not be reached for comment.
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Thomas Grillo can be reached at [email protected].
