L.A. Intends to Implement Final Offer to Paramedics

Los Angeles city labor negotiators have told the United Paramedics of Los Angeles, who have been working without a contract since June 30, 1985, that the city plans to put into effect the city’s final offer of a 4% raise for each of the last two years and maintain a provision requiring paramedics to work a maximum of 48 consecutive hours a week.

City negotiator Royce A. Menkus said Thursday she told union representatives that unilateral implementation of such a retroactive contract would be delayed until the UPLA membership could vote on it.

Union President Fred Hurtado, however, said Menkus had simply handed the paramedics a take-it-or-leave-it offer. He noted that the city has refused to budge from its offer despite a fact-finder’s recommendation for a 9% salary boost on top of the 4% plus 4%. The union, he said, had followed with a compromise proposal “that was considerably less than the fact-finder recommended.”