The Buffalo Grove Village Board voted to approve a three-year contract with its firefighters union that includes a 2.5% increase in firefighters' pay in the first year.
Under the new collective bargaining agreement, which runs through April 2023, firefighters would see a 2.52% increase in compensation in the first year, while lieutenants' pay would bump up 2.0%. A newly starting firefighter would earn $66,466, while the starting pay for a newly promoted lieutenant who also is a paramedic would be $113,900, according to the contract trustees approved Nov. 2. Wage increases in years two and three of the contract will be negotiated separately through a wage reopener.
Negotiating the contract in the midst of the pandemic was not easy, Buffalo Grove Director of Human Resources Arthur A. Malinowski Jr. told the Village Board, as the two sides had difficulty being able to meet in person.