HUNTINGTON BEACH : Talks Broken Off With Firefighters

The city and its firefighters’ union on Wednesday announced that they are formally breaking off their year-old contract talks, but union leaders said a strike is not imminent.

Negotiators for the city and the Huntington Beach Firefighters Assn. will meet July 24 to outline terms of the impasse declaration, said William Osness, the city’s personnel director. Both sides have recommended calling in a state-appointed arbitrator to propose a resolution.

The union’s 144 members--including captains, firefighters, fire engineers, paramedics and dispatchers--have been working without a contract since October. But the employees are not discussing a strike or work slowdown, said Curt Campbell, association’s president.

“We’re just doing our jobs every day, providing fire and emergency medical services,” Campbell said Wednesday after a last-ditch meeting to settle the dispute. “We believe in the process. When this goes to an arbitrator, I think we will get a fair shake. We will put our case to (an arbitrator) and live by his recommendations.”

Mayor Peter M. Green said he is confident that the dispute will not affect fire services.

The city is offering most of the union’s employees a 19.5% raise over three years, retroactive to October--similar to salary increases recently approved for all of the city’s other employee groups.

The proposal would give more raises to firefighters and fire engineers, who union leaders say are underpaid in comparison with other county firefighting agencies. Firefighters would receive an additional 2% raise during the three-year term, and fire engineers would get an extra 1% salary increase.

The union is asking for a three-year package, with 23.5% raises for all its members, along with the extra raises for firefighters and fire engineers.

Osness said the city cannot afford to offer the union more than its current proposal. “One thing that is pretty clear is what we’re offering is a pretty generous offer, considering what’s going on financially,” he said.

Campbell pointed out that pay for Huntington Beach firefighters now ranges from about $31,000 yearly up to $40,080, which places them 14th in pay among the county’s 16 firefighting agencies--even though the city is the county’s third-largest and handles the third-highest number of emergency calls among county agencies.

The city’s latest offer would bring its firefighters up to seventh in pay in the county, he said.

“We’re trying to get some movement from the city, so over a span of time we’ll be in the process of catching up,” Campbell said. “But the city’s not willing to move much in that direction.”