Fall River EMS Contract Approval Delayed by Tied Finance Committee Vote on Funding

FALL RIVER ─ Fall River EMS staff will have to wait and see if the City Council is willing to approve a new three-year collective bargaining agreement.

On Tuesday at a Finance Committee meeting, after more than an hour-long debate with the administration on the proposed appropriation of funds to cover the salary increases of $271,000 for the first year of the contract, the appropriation motion failed in a 4-4 vote.

The transfer motion required a simple majority. City Councilor Brad Kilby would have been the deciding vote, but left during the hearing on the matter and before the vote. On Thursday, he said he had to leave the meeting early for a family matter.

After the funding transfer failed, City Councilor Shawn Cadime noted that the approval of the EMS contract couldn’t go forward without the Council’s approval of the funding.

What does the contract look like?

Across the board, EMS staff will receive a 2 ½ percent raise in each of the three years of the contract.

EMS had recently entered contracts with Charlton Memorial Hospital and St. Anne’s Hospital to provide transportation for patients between facilities that require advanced skill sets, said EMS Director Beth Faunce.

The contracts are expected to bring in additional revenue to the EMS enterprise fund.

Called an “interfacility transfer,” or IFT, it is distinct from a 911 call that requires specialized care or monitoring during transit. Faunce said it requires additional training.

According to the terms of the contract, those staff members working on facility transports will receive an additional 3 ½ percent above the new increases when performing those specific duties.

Cadime questioned why all EMS staff were not required to receive the training for IFT. Faunce said some of the more veteran EMS staff do not want to work outside 911 calls.

“I’m old school. If I’m an employer, and I’m hiring employees, I don’t let the employers tell me what to do,” said Cadime.

Faunce said all new hires are required to have IFT training.

Nick Macolini, the director of Human Resources, said there was a lot of value in the concessions in the employment contract, like fewer sick days allowed, and that the union members agreed to the pay disparity.

Over three years, the proposed salary increases will cost the city $680,000, according to Emily Arpke, the city’s finance analysis and compliance manager.

City Councilor Cliff Ponte said the matter will likely come before the Council during the next meeting and that while he wanted to support the contract, he was looking for more details from the finance team as to the financial impact it will have on the budget.