Firefighters: No special deals

Firefighters in Omaha fired back today at the idea they have a “sweetheart” labor contract, saying a group of businessmen who are critical of the contract are more interested in saving money than lives.

The firefighters also said their 171-page contract saves taxpayers in the long run, by settling many labor issues before they go to court.

“The complexity and the thoroughness of our contract keeps us out of labor disputes,” said Steve LeClair, president of the Omaha firefighters union.

The clash over the firefighters' contract started after a group of about 25 businessmen and businesswomen took aim at the contract, saying it “shackles” management's hands with a list of contractual demands about staffing and equipment. The group, called Omaha Alliance for the Private Sector, contends that changes can be made to the contract without compromising public safety.

Members also said in a press conference today that the contract includes “sweetheart” deals that go beyond what is the norm in the private sector. For example, they took aim at a provision in the contract that allows firefighters and their family members to receive Lasik eye surgery as part of their health care package.

One of the group's leaders is Dave Nabity, a former Republican gubernatorial candidate and financial adviser.

Nabity and the group has called on Mayor Jim Suttle to appoint an attorney with no ties to the city or the union to oversee negotiations for a new contract.

They also say the people currently representing the city in negotiations have too many ties to past labor contracts or to the firefighters' union and should be removed.

Suttle dismissed both ideas Tuesday.

Omaha Fire Chief Mike McDonnell is a former union president. He is not a member of the city's negotiating team. Instead, the Fire Department is represented by Assistant Fire Chief Joe Gibilisco, who served as union secretary under McDonnell.

Tom Marfisi also represents the city. As the city's director of human resources, Marfisi was involved in city contracts for more than two decades.

On Tuesday, Suttle named a replacement for Marfisi as director of human resources but said Marfisi would continue to handle the city's labor negotiations.

The business group wants both men removed from the negotiating team.

“We're calling for the mayor to appoint an independent negotiator. We don't want anyone who had their fingers (on past contracts) representing Omaha's taxpayers,” said Nabity.

Suttle rejected the group's requests, declining to either remove the men from the team or start over on contract negotiations. He said other people on the city's negotiating team bring a “fresh perspective.”

Steve Oltmans, Suttle's chief of staff, is a member of the negotiating team. So is City Finance Director Pam Spaccarotella. Both are new to City Hall.

Suttle said it was too late to start over on contract negotiations, which have been ongoing for several months. “We're too far down the line,” said Ron Gerard, Suttle's spokesman.

Nabity and his group say it's not too late to start negotiations from scratch.

Nabity said he and others formed the group last summer to serve as a watchdog over government spending.The group's officers: President Mike Simmonds, chairman of Simmonds Restaurant Management; Vice President George Venteicher, a real estate developer; and Secretary Rick Bettger, president of the House of Mufflers & Brakes. Nabity is the group's treasurer.

Earlier this year, the group worked to repeal an ordinance that required four firefighters to serve on each firetruck. The City Council repealed the ordinance, but the rule remains a part of the firefighters' contract.

Bettger and Nabity said that this time, their focus is on the contract, which they say is overly generous to firefighters.

They objected to the health insurance deductible of $150 for individuals and $300 for families. Most people in the private sector pay substantially higher deductibles, Nabity said.

Nabity said an outside negotiator could save the city $7 million, although he was not ready to detail exactly where those savings could be found.

The group said the fire contract is cumbersome and ties management's hands by dictating how work shifts should be arranged, how many battalion chiefs must be assigned for each work shift and how many captains must be assigned to each fire unit.

“It's not left up to management discretion,” said Nabity.

The Omaha fire contract has about 170 pages.

By comparison, Nabity said, in Des Moines' the fire contract has 32 pages; in Lincoln, 55 pages; and in St. Paul, Minn., 34 pages.

Des Moines, Lincoln and St. Paul are three of the cities that the Nebraska Commission of Industrial Relations uses as comparison cities when reviewing the city's contract.

The commission has been designated by state law as the final arbiter of union contracts involving public employees in Nebraska.

Omaha's three other comparison cities are Cincinnati; Madison, Wis.; and Milwaukee.

The Cincinnati and Milwaukee contracts were closer in size to the Omaha contract, in part, because all three contracts contain details of health insurance programs.

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