A $2.4 million federal grant, which pays for more than two dozen firefighting positions in Camden, is set to expire in June. City officials are working on a contingency plan, but that would cut about half of those jobs. A consolidation plan was submitted to the state Department of Community Affairs (DCA) that would reduce overtime, cut the management structure, and leave a half-dozen firefighting positions unfilled. Twelve jobs would be lost out of the 196 that are currently budgeted.
Unions representing those who will be affected have met, insisting that they can’t handle fire protection like a typical run-of-the-mill business.
“Firefighters have to do more with less,” said IAFF Local 2578 president Samuel Munoz. “That’s where injuries happen — particularly catastrophic injuries — not only to firefighters but also limits the ability of firefighters to safely mitigate incidents.”