The long contract impasse between the City of Wilmington and its firefighters’ union has come to an end.
The union is unhappy with the resolution. The dispute went to binding arbitration, with the state Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) decision Wednesday in favor of the City’s contract offer.
The firefighters’ last contract expired almost four years ago. They started negotiating a new one with the City early last year. IAFF Local 1590 membership rejected a tentative agreement in February which union president Joe Leonetti, Jr., described as less restrictive than the one they ended up with.
The new four-year contract, retroactive to July 2019, includes 2-percent yearly cost-of-living increases, higher healthcare costs for firefighters and a new shift schedule requiring them to work 24-hour shifts every three days, instead of every four, as they do now.