Countywide : Firefighters Union OKs New Contract

The Ventura County firefighters union has voted to accept a new 2 1/2-year contract, putting a halt to months of bitter negotiations with county officials.

The contract, approved narrowly by the 400 members of the Ventura County Professional Firefighters Assn. in voting that ended over the weekend, grants the firefighters three salary increases, union administrator Gillian Martinez said.

The increases--3% July 1, 4% July 1, 1993, and 4% Jan. 1, 1994--will cost the county about $2.3 million, said Ed McLean, Ventura County assistant personnel director.

The average county firefighter’s salary is about $35,000 a year.

Negotiations over the contract were protracted. Firefighters picketed during the negotiations and protested their treatment at a Board of Supervisors meeting.

Union members were not overly enthusiastic about the new contract, which was the subject of acrimonious debate between firefighters and county officials for months, Martinez said.

Parts of the contract limiting the number of employees who can take comp time and a new requirement forcing firefighters to reimburse the department for specialized training if they fail to fulfill minimum service requirements were sharply criticized.

“Some of them didn’t like it because they didn’t think it was enough,” Martinez said. “Not all of them got what they wanted, but . . . the firemen appreciate the fact that they have it.”