Friday, January 13, 2012
At the center of the dispute is a fundamental disagreement about how much the firefighters' contract will cost the city.
Somerville Firefighters packed into City Hall for the second time in three days to support an arbitration decision that awards them a retroactive contract. The arbitration award stems from a decision made in December by a state labor panel—the Joint Labor-Management Committee. However, the city disputes that committee's findings and has filed suit in Middlesex Superior Court to halt the award, arguing the city can't afford it. At the center of the dispute is a fundamental disagreement over how much the arbitration decision will cost the city. Speaking to the Somerville Board of Aldermen Thursday, Jay Colbert, president of Somerville's firefighters union, said, "I've heard a lot of mistruths, innuendoes around the city. First [that] the …
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
The city is trying to halt an arbitration agreement that would give firefighters $4.3 million in back pay, according to the Boston Globe.
A throng of Somerville firefighters packed into City Hall Tuesday night to support an arbitration agreement with the city and pressure elected officials to do the same. According to the Boston Globe, the state's Joint Labor-Management Committee oversaw an arbitration process that, in December, awarded the firefighters $4.3 million in back pay. The paper reported that the city and the International Association of Firefighters Local 76, Somerville's firefighters union, had been trying to hammer out an agreement since 2007, when the firefighters' last contract expired. The Joint Labor-Management Committee oversees collective bargaining agreements between municipalities and local firefighters and police officers, who aren't allowed to strike …
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Friday, September 23, 2011
Matthew Kane and Daniel Donegan were sworn in as firefighters Thursday night.
Matthew Kane and Daniel Donegan were sworn in as permanent firefighters in Somerville at the Board of Aldermen meeting Thursday night. Kane served in the Marine Corps from 2001 to 2006, working as a technician with aircraft electronic countermeasure systems and spending time staitoned overseas in Japan. Donegan served in the Army infantry from 2004 to 2008, including a stint in Iraq from 2005 to 2006. The two will start duty in Somerville on Oct. 17, and both said they were "excited" to begin careers as firefighters in the city.
