Local News in Brief : Orange : Firefighters Accept Pact After 8 Months of Talks

After eight months of negotiations, firefighters Thursday accepted a contract proposal that Mayor Jess F. Perez called a “win-win” agreement.

“It’s unfortunate that it took this long,” Perez said. “The bottom line is that this is a win-win situation for the firefighters, as well as the city of Orange.”

In the proposed contract, firefighters’ salaries will be raised 8% over the next three years, starting retroactively from January, 1988, Perez said. The contract also includes retirement benefits and educational incentives.

The City Council proposed the contract, which the Firefighters Assn. agreed on Thursday, Perez said. For that reason, he said, he expects the council to ratify the contract at the Aug. 9 council meeting.

“Now we can go back to what we should be doing--the firefighters with suppressing and fighting fires and the staff with dealing with the burdens of city hall,” Perez said.