Wolfeboro firefighters tell their side of the story

BY CATHERINE BROADBENT


D'AMBRUOSO


Communications Director Professional Fire Fighters of New Hampshire [Editor’s Note: In the interest of fairness we asked the Professional Fire Fighters of Wolfeboro to present their side of the dispute with the Town of Wolfeboro that led first to the town’s decision to rescind recognition of the firefighters union and then a decision by Carroll County Superior Court Judge Steven Houran upholding the town’s action – a decision that Judge Houran has agreed to rehear on March 31. The following account was submitted in response to that request.]


On June 21, 1996, the Wolfeboro New Hampshire Fire Fighters became affiliated with the International Association of Fire Fighters. This move provided them with better education, fraternal benefits and instant relationships with fire fighters locally and nationwide. In the mid-1990s the Professional Fire Fighters of Wolfeboro, IAFF Local 3708 decided to begin the process of acquiring the right to collectively bargain. Today, more than a decade later, members of IAFF Local 3708 are still not able to collectively bargain, and they have no current contract. The current president of the local union, Jim Dearborn, who has been a member since the beginning of the fight, says the question regarding the right to collectively bargain was on the ballot three times; in 1999, 2001

and 2002. In 2002, the measure passed by more than 100 votes. Between 2002 and 2007 Local 3708 and the town enjoyed a period where they agreed on working conditions. The

firefighters were employed under a contract and could count on pay and insurance, which, in turn,provided predictability for the town. In 2007 the contract expired, but both parties were still honoring the previous contract agreement. Attempts in 2008 and 2009 to negotiate a successor agreement failed as both parties could not agree on the other’s concessions. In early July 2010 the parties met and signed an agreement for "Negotiation Ground Rules" for the conduct of further negotiations, agreeing among other things that either party could request mediation after Oct. 1, 2010. A negotiation

meeting scheduled for July 28, 2010 was canceled by the town without explanation. On Aug. 4, a Board of Selectmen meeting was held without proper notice to the public, a violation of the ground rules. At this meeting the board voted to rescind recognition of the collective bargaining rights of the local. The Board of Selectmen breached the contracts when they restructured the firefighters’ compensation plan and granted the town the ability to terminate a firefighter at will rather than having to show just-cause and negotiate. These wholesale changes failed to observe the status quo doctrine

pending a new contract. Dearborn and several taxpayers eventually sued the town of Wolfeboro in September 2010 requesting injunctive relief, including an order that the collective bargaining agreement between parties remain in effect, requesting a writ of mandamus requiring that the town negotiate in good faith and asserting claims for breach of contract violations of the right-to-know law among other things.The suit arose in response to the failed renegotiation of the Wolfeboro Firefighters’ contract with the town. The Board of Selectman moved to dismiss the contract, the firefighters objected and a hearing was scheduled. At the time of the selectman’s meeting in August 2010, the Fire Fighters Union had a contract. The result of the meeting left the firefighters

with the health plan they had under the previous contract, and a pay plan outlined in the same document. Since the injunction was granted the court held another hearing and has since found in favor of the town of Wolfeboro in which the contract was voided for numerous legal reasons.

A motion for reconsideration was filed by the firefighters in superior court on Jan. 14. In February the same judge that decided on the previous hearing granted the firefighters a rehearing on the facts and arguments made in the motion. This meeting is scheduled

for March 31 at 9 a.m. If you want your elected officials to keep their word and follow the demands of the taxpayer, you should call your elected officials to let them know you, as a voter, support the firefighters.

http://www.newhampshirelakesandmountains.com/pdf/GSN.2011.03.10.pdf