SWAMPSCOTT — The town has accepted new contracts with its police and fire unions which would remove them from the civil service system and eliminate minimum manning requirements.
The one-year contracts, which have a total estimated cost of $452,800 — $213,115 for the police department and $239,685 for the fire department — were approved at Tuesday night’s portion of the annual Town Meeting.
“I do believe it reflects the give and take that allows the Town of Swampscott and public safety unions to work together and usher in a new contract and a new generation of changes that will help define excellence in public safety,” said Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald.
The contracts include a 3 percent raise, one-time payments to both unions, education incentives for police officers, and physical abilities testing for firefighters.
Finance Committee Chair Tim Dorsey explained that the current minimum manning rules, which require the departments to have a certain number of staff working at all times, have resulted in very high overtime rates for the town over the years. In fiscal year 2021, the town paid $662,704 in overtime for the fire department and $772,365 for the police department.
By removing those requirements, the town allows the chiefs of each department to use their discretion when staffing each shift.
The town voted in the November special Town Meeting to remove the departments from the civil service system in order to encourage more diversity in hiring and promotions.
“I think what we were lacking locally was flexibility in our ability to hire and promote people within the department, and bringing that local control back to Swampscott is important,” said Police Chief Ron Madigan.
Fire Chief Graham Archer said that the new contracts were very important for the town.
“There was a lot of give and take,” he said. “The unions gave up some extraordinary protections that they get under civil service, and they’ve placed their faith in the town to do right by them. I’ll be a tireless advocate to make sure that they are taken care of.”
The contract will last for one year, meaning that the town will negotiate again in the coming year to secure a longer-term contract, which would be voted on at next year’s Town Meeting.
On Monday night, Town Meeting members approved a $70.68 million operating budget for FY21 after close to four hours of discussion.
Tuesday night’s meeting also approved an increase of the cost of living adjustment (COLA) base from $13,000 to $14,000 for town retirees, as well as a $40,000 free cash transfer to fund the design and renovation of Windsor Avenue Park. This transfer is in anticipation of a state grant that the town expects to receive for the project.
