Atlanta city councilman warns city will lose firefighters if pay doesn't increase
Atlanta firefighters bring attention to inadequate pay, councilman speaks out
Atlanta officials say city commissioners were met with cases from firefighter officials after the city failed to fulfill first responders pay raises. Officials say city council has budget power to change the plan and boost firefighter pay. An Atlanta Councilman spoke out about the issue saying inadequate pay jeopardizes fire manpower.
ATLANTA - An Atlanta City Council member warns the city will lose more firefighters if it fails to keep a pledge to the first responders to dramatically increase pay.
Currently, the top pay for a city firefighter is $55,000. That is significantly behind the local market. Mayor Andre Dickens said a pay increase for many firefighters in the city was written into his first budget.
When Atlanta Fire Chief Roderick Smith detailed his budget, Atlanta City Council member Dustin Hillis found the top pay to be at least $6,000 below the annual hike firefighters are expecting.
Due to low manpower, the city has had to close temporarily some stations.
The chief responded that the overall cash pot for salaries at just over $15 million had not been trimmed.
His pay scale takes into account fire managers who are also behind the market.
Councilwoman Mary Norwood asked the chief to take a fresh look and come back with a figure that will upgrade firefighters at all levels.
Firefighters in Atlanta say they are pulling double shifts — working 48 hours straight — in order to keep all the firehouses open.
Union President Nate Bailey says staffing has gotten "dangerously low." At busy stations, firefighters are getting little sleep, and he says that can impact performance. Bailey said a number of the suburban fire departments pay their veteran firefighters more than $70,000 annually.