The city’s firefighters’ union might know before the end of the year whether an arbitrator will decide if a “minimum manning” clause can continue in its labor contract.
On Wednesday, the Appellate Division, Fourth Department, in Rochester, heard oral arguments from attorneys for the city and the Watertown Professional Fire Fighters Association Local 191.
Last January, state Supreme Court Judge James P. McClusky ruled in the city’s favor to block arbitration over the “minimum manning” clause, which requires that 15 firefighters must be on duty at all times.
It’s been the main sticking point during the city’s more than four-year contract stalemate with the firefighters’ union.
The union hopes to reverse the decision by Judge McClusky, who ruled that minimum manning violates public policy because elected officials should control the budget through managing the costs of employees. Judge McClusky also concluded that minimum manning is unenforceable.