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Council Should Protect Taxpayers From Excessive Union Demands

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 22, 2008

The choice before the Tampa City Council today is simple: Appease a politically powerful union by awarding it an exorbitant pay package or safeguard limited tax dollars.

With negotiations between Mayor Pam Iorio and the International Association of Firefighters, Local 754, at an impasse, the council must decide the matter.

The union's clout should not be underestimated. Members are known for energetically campaigning for political supporters. It will take grit for council members to do the right thing.

The council should heed the advice of a special magistrate who listened to both sides and made a nonbinding recommendation. The union's arguments ignore what's best for the community at large, he said, "given the changing circumstances confronting government bodies in Florida."

The city's offer, he said, better fits the "interest and welfare of the public."

The union rejected those findings, of course, which is why council members must decide the matter.

The difference between the two proposals is significant, $2.6 million. The firefighter's union wants raises that would run as high as 10 percent for some. Mayor Pam Iorio has countered with a 6.5 percent increase, still exceptionally generous in this grim economic climate.

Firefighters, to be sure, are essential public guardians, but they are adequately compensated, with a starting salary of $33,500 and a maximum salary of $63,498 for those never promoted. Plus, they can retire after 20 years with about two-thirds of their pay - roughly $41,000 for those who've reached the top of the pay scale, which most quickly do.

Nevertheless, the union wants an across-the-board raise of 5 percent and a second "step plan" increase that averages 5 percent. The step plan, which is written into the contract, requires firefighters to get a second annual raise of between 1.2 percent and 19.5 percent, depending on years of service. These step increases should be eliminated. Firefighters should get a single pay raise based on job performance, just like other city workers.

Union officials argue that only about half the roughly 560 members qualify for the step increase because those at the top of the pay scale are not eligible. The mayor's offer includes a 3 percent across-the-board raise for all firefighters and a 3.5 percent step raise, a sensible offer.

The union says the mayor's proposal would hurt the city's ability to attract new applicants, but the magistrate didn't buy it. "In fact, there appear to be very few open positions," he said. Indeed, the fire department has long had a waiting list of applicants.

Simply put, there is no justification for going with the higher raises.

Local governments must hold the line on escalating personnel costs, which account for about 75 percent of their operating budgets. Because of the real-estate crash, legislative mandates and the recent doubling of the homestead exemption, Tampa's recurring property-tax revenues dropped about $28 million over the past two years.

Besides, the city just began negotiations with the Amalgamated Transit Union, which represents about 2,100 garbage collectors, secretaries and other nonprofessional workers. So if the council succumbs to the firefighters' demands, it should expect a similar cry from other unions.

As they cast their votes today, council members should demonstrate fiscal discipline and political courage, keeping in mind, as the magistrate said, the "interest and welfare of the public."

If they don't, voters will remember - and hold them accountable.

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