In a blow to the Kokomo firefighters’ union, a Howard County judge late last week denied a sweeping request that was at the center of a recent complaint filed against city officials.
The decision, denying the union's request for arbitration and injunctive relief, is the latest development in what has become a publicly contentious clash over the two sides’ collective bargaining efforts toward a new contract - a process that began in June and has included at least eight private meetings.
In early December, the Professional Firefighters of Kokomo Local 396 filed a civil suit in Howard Superior Court 4, requesting Judge George Hopkins prohibit the city from terminating the existing fire contract at the end of the year and "until such time that the matter can be arbitrated."