Jefferson Fire Fighters Association

"See through the smoke"

FACTS

Every taxpayer living in East Jefferson has the right to personally speak to the Parish President and the Jefferson Parish Council Members, who are elected officials.

If you have recently tried to contact Jefferson Parish President Broussard or one of the Jefferson Parish Council Members to ask them to support the firefighters by voting against the proposed Amendments of the Jefferson Parish Red Book, and were denied access to actually speak to them, as most of our firefighters and family members have been directed to visit their web site, with their office staff telling callers they cannot speak to you, due to pending law suits between Jefferson Fire Fighters Association and Jefferson Parish; you can remind them you are a tax payer of East Jefferson and are paying the bill for the lawsuit. There is no court ordered “gag” order. The Parish attorney has advised the Council members not to discuss firefighter issues. This is another smoke screen put up by the Parish, to allow Eastbank Consolidated Fire Department administrators to post misleading information that can only be read by the public, with no avenue to question the issues that are relevant to the firefighters, citizens and business owners of East Jefferson.

The Jefferson Parish Council will be asked to vote on the proposal at the January 14, 2009 meeting.

Council members have been told by Eastbank Consolidated Fire Department administrators the Jefferson Fire Fighters Association exaggerates. For three years, Jefferson Parish's Eastbank Consolidated Fire Department's incompetent administrators repeatedly violated applicable law. Jefferson Fire Fighters Association was forced to file law suits in an effort to correct these violations. Parish President Broussard and the Council were mailed a written plea on April 7, 2008 by the Jefferson Fire Fighters Association to make them aware of the fire personnel’s concerns regarding mismanagement, safety issues, bad decisions, and unwise spending by Eastbank Consolidated Fire Department administrators.

What's really going on between Jefferson firefighters and Jefferson Parish administrators?

The Jefferson Fire Fighters Association censured CAA Deano Bonano and Interim Fire Director Dave Saunders with unanimous votes of 'no confidence' on October 3, 2008. Within three weeks, Interim Fire Director Saunders suddenly proposed a work schedule change that will result in an immediate massive pay cut for fire personnel. This work schedule has been in effect for (50) years and a 1993 fire and rescue study deemed the current schedule "most appropriate" and cost effective.

The study based its findings for the Eastbank Consolidated Fire Department on the hours worked each year and the amount of firefighters covering the work hours with the scheduled overtime. The conclusion of the study would be the same today as it was in 1993. It still takes (207) suppression personnel divided into three shifts to cover (24) hours a day, (365) days a year, working an average (56.5) hour work week. 

Jefferson Parish wants you to believe:

Myth: Jefferson Parish takes great pride in the reputation and fine work of their first responders, including their firefighters.

 

Fact: Jefferson Parish is minimizing the value of their firefighters. Jefferson Parish has added many titles to their list of first responders since Hurricane Katrina, but firefighters have always been on the front lines and should never be treated as second rate employees.

 

Myth: The Parish has provided the resources to place the fire department at the top of its peer group in the state and region.

 

Fact: The taxpayers of East Jefferson authorized the annual collection of dedicated funds of up to 25 mills of property taxes to fund a professional fire department manned by career firefighters. The Eastbank Consolidated Fire Department's funds are being spent unwisely by fire department administrators, and without as much as an offer to curb fire administrator's frivolous spending, or to cut expenses in any other area, and under the false pretense of budgetary constraints; Jefferson Parish proposes to harm firefighter families by drastically cutting their pay, and continues to profess firefighters are at the top of its peer group, while at the same time wasting more fire department funds, by hiring a New Orleans based lawyer and public relations firm, in an effort to discredit these public servants.

 

Myth: We enjoy the best fire rating that benefits our residents with lower casualty insurance ratings. We would never do anything that jeopardizes the safety of our citizens, the support of our firefighters or the fire rating we enjoy.

 

Fact: Eastbank Consolidated Fire Department's Class 1 fire rating has been in jeopardy since the departure of former fire director, Jack Collier. The department has seen unprecedented amounts of unfilled firefighter positions, safety issues that have not been addressed, the shutting down of fire equipment to send firefighters to training classes that are not required by the (PIAL) Property Insurance Association of Louisiana, yet fails to provide recertification classes that are required. The disposal of a necessary spare ladder truck, ten months before it was replaced could cause a loss in the fire rating which would raise fire and casualty insurance rates. Reduced manpower amounts to less safety for firefighters and the citizens.

 

Myth: Jefferson Parish's objective is to adopt a revised pay plan, work schedule, sick leave and drug testing policy for the Jefferson Parish East Bank Consolidated Fire Department. 

 

Fact: Parish President Broussard ordered a pay study to review fire personnel’s salaries and benefit packages in order to address substandard wages for fire personnel, and agreed to enact the findings. Fire personnel base pays had not been reviewed in (17) years and they had received only a 1.5% raise from 1990-2007. The new pay plan conducted by L-Staff, a certified management company was adopted by unanimous vote of the Parish council in October 2006 with an effective date of January 1, 2007. The study concluded that firefighters in East Jefferson based on their current pay plan, including scheduled overtime and yearly merit raises needed to be increased by 35% to bring firefighter salaries up to the regional average of similarly sized fire departments.

 

Myth: Absolutely nothing in the proposed amendments to the Red Book, the section of the parish code that governs the East Bank Consolidated Fire Department, will threaten public safety. To the contrary, they will allow for efficiencies and the opportunity to expand the department, ensuring that we will always have well- trained, fresh and alert men and women on the job.

 

Fact: Jefferson Parish's contracted attorney, Mickey Landry and other Parish representatives have recently been in the media misleading the public. It might not threaten public safety when Jefferson Parish violates employees constitutional rights by noncompliant drug testing and reporting policies; but claims by the Parish that the proposal will allow Jefferson Parish to expand the fire department by hiring 20 new additional firefighters will actually still force the fire department to operate at least 17 firefighters short. Statistics prove when fire departments are short on manpower, fire crew efficiency falls and firefighter injuries dramatically increase. Claims by Jefferson Parish that this proposal will improve the current level of protection to life and property and that it will save the Parish more than $2 million each year are false. The fire administrators have not done the math. When you eliminate (442) hours of scheduled overtime per employee each year, you will need to hire (1) additional firefighter for each (5.67) employees to cover these hours. The Eastbank Consolidated Fire Department currently has (207) fire suppression personnel. Taking into consideration uniforms, protective gear, training, vacations, injuries, retirement contributions etc., you must hire (37) additional personnel to cover these overtime hours. If you use the Parish’s figures of an average $70,000.00 per year for each firefighter, plus benefits that would bring the cost for each new employee to approximately $105,000.00 for a total cost of $3,885,000.00. Hiring the additional firefighters to cover the schedule change that Jefferson Parish proposes would actually increase the cost to Jefferson Parish by over $1,000,000.00 each year.