The Wauwatosa firefighters union is pleading with city leaders for reassurances that its members will not lose ground in contract negotiations now that the city is on track to seal a deal with West Allis to merge the two fire departments next year.
The Common Council is scheduled to vote on that proposed merger at its 7 p.m. Dec. 16 meeting at City Hall and on Zoom based on a term sheet and draft agreement, which are posted online. The council’s Government Affairs Committee recommended passage in a 5-2 vote at its Dec. 9 meeting.
On Dec. 12, the firefighters’ Local 1923 sent a letter addressed to Mayor Dennis McBride and the 16 members of the council sounding an alarm about labor uncertainty in the two cities’ plan.
“The mayor has compared this merger to the beginning of a relationship. Yet relationships depend on mutual trust, and what we are experiencing instead feels far closer to the early stages of a divorce,” the union said in its letter, a copy of which was provided to Tosa Forward News. It followed up with a post to Facebook asking for the public's support.
Read the union's full letter here.
City leaders have explained that some labor uncertainty is inevitable, given that they are unable to negotiate a contract with the Wauwatosa and West Allis unions for a consolidated fire department until that department is created. Local 1923 in its letter to Tosa leaders said it “remains fully committed to a fair, cooperative and successful merger,” but it is insisting on written assurances that its members will continue to receive at least their current level of benefits in the new department, competitive health care plans and “good-faith exploration of an improved work schedule that supports recruitment and retention.”
“Wauwatosa firefighters who have dedicated so much of their lives to this city will ultimately carry the heaviest burden in making this merger a success,” the union said. “All we ask is that you show your support for the firefighters who have made this department exceptional for so many years. If Local 1923 does not feel that support we will have no choice but to withdraw our support for the merger plans moving forward.”
After that letter was distributed, the Government Affairs Committee scheduled an additional meeting at 6 p.m. Dec. 16 for an “update and discussion on collective bargaining with the Wauwatosa Professional Firefighters Local 1923.” The agenda specifies that discussion may occur in closed session.
The union’s letter to city leaders notes that it has been working for more than two years without a contract, as negotiations have progressed with “minimal meaningful progress.” While those negotiations were underway, Wauwatosa leaders have been in talks since January with their counterparts in West Allis about a potential merger of the two departments to ensure both cities continue receiving a high level of service at a time when budget constraints have led to cuts to some services.
Wauwatosa, with about 50,000 residents, and West Allis, with about 60,000, are two of Wisconsin’s largest municipalities and the largest cities in Milwaukee County outside of the City of Milwaukee. Tosa and West Allis leaders have argued that the two neighboring cities, in addition to being about the same size, are well-suited for a consolidated fire department because the existing departments also are similar in size and levels of service.
A merger also would produce estimated savings of $7 million in the first five years, much of it through administrative staff reductions by attrition, or leaving vacancies unfilled, according to a consultant’s analysis of the proposal. The two cities would apply for more than $40 million from a five-year state grant program, which has an initial application deadline of March 31.
City officials, however, have cautioned against expecting those savings to result in lower taxes, especially at a time when the cost of public services continues to rise. Savings likely would allow the two cities to maintain fire services at current levels or enhance those services. A joint department also would give the cities greater flexibility to raise property taxes as needed to avoid fire service reductions.
In September, the Wauwatosa firefighters union offered its support for the merger in concept while calling for “clarity, fairness and respect” as talks progressed between the two cities.
Under current staffing levels, Wauwatosa employs six captains, 12 lieutenants, 15 engineers and 59 firefighters. West Allis employs 10 captains, 12 lieutenants, 12 engineers and 51 firefighters. The exact staffing levels of a potential combined department would still need to be negotiated, though initial estimates indicate a consolidation would result in a reduction of only three of those positions, through vacancies left unfilled.
Wauwatosa Fire Chief Jim Case told Tosa Forward News in September that the unions have been included as a stakeholder in merger talks from the beginning.
The Tosa union, in its Dec. 12 letter, argues more forcefully for the city to listen to the firefighters’ concerns, including their calls for parity with the police officers’ union.
“Our position is straightforward: employees should not lose ground during a merger — particularly when history, precedent, and basic fairness all support maintaining the benefits they have earned,” Local 1923 said. “The city’s refusal to formalize even basic transitional protections, coupled with its unwillingness to meaningfully address parity concerns, has eroded trust and cast doubt on the stability of the merger process.”
- David Paulsen, a Tosa East Towne resident and editor of Tosa Forward News, has more than 25 years of experience as a professional journalist. He can be reached at editor@tosanews.com.
