By Michelle Villarreal
The Corpus Christi Caller-Times
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas ? Corpus Christi fire union officials and the city reached a tentative contract agreement Friday afternoon that details insurance premiums and pay increases for firefighters.
Union President Carlos Torres said details still are being worked out, but the two groups agreed upon a $5.1 million compensation package with a 4 percent pay increase during the next two fiscal years.
"The ultimate goal was to do away with the (insurance) plan we had because it was expensive and it was almost unaffordable," said Steve Bowers, firefighter and union vice president.
Assistant City Manager Troy Riggs said that after a year of negotiations all concerns between the sides were addressed.
"It's fair for the union and the citizens of Corpus Christi," he said.
Riggs said not only did they reach an agreement, the sides developed a trust that will help in daily operations.
The tentative three-year contract includes more affordable insurance rates for firefighters and their families, a pay increase for the next two years, funds for retired firefighters and an alternative hiring process.
City officials at one point offered union officials a $5.1 million total compensation package that featured no pay increases during the next two fiscal years.
Union officials came back with an offer agreeing to the $5.1 million, but keeping their existing health insurance plan and using the funds for a 6 percent pay increase each year for the next two fiscal years. The city rejected that offer.
"We couldn't spend (the money) the way we wanted to," Bowers said. "We had to spend it the way they wanted to."
Since last spring, firefighters have sought lower health premiums and higher wages during contract negotiations.
For more than a decade, firefighters have paid nearly twice as much in health insurance premiums compared with city police officers.
Bowers said union officials were asking for a plan similar to that of the Police Department. He said the old plan forced firefighters to pay $200 a month for a single person or $750 a month for a family plan, while police officers are covered by the city under a single plan and pay $400 a month for a family.
After reaching an impasse in March, fire union officials called for an objective fact-finding report, which sided with firefighter demands. It recommended their proposal, which asked for nearly $12.6 million in compensation.
The tentative plan gives firefighters a 2 percent raise that will go into effect Aug. 1 and another 2 percent raise next August. Firefighters also will have an alternative hiring process in which people who were trained as a paramedic or firefighter at other institutions and pass the Fire Department's entrance exam can bypass the city's training phase.
The one- to two-year process can be cut down to four months.
"That's a benefit to the city and citizens," Torres said.
City officials will present the plan to the City Council on Tuesday.
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