Firefighters Union Reaches Agreement With Village on New Contract

A three-year deal has been inked between the and the Professional Firefighters of Lake Zurich Local 3191.

In executive session after the Sept. 19 board meeting, trustees voted 5-0 in favor of the contract that, in part, will give firefighters a 1.75 percent pay increase for the first year of the contract.

Trustee Dana Rzeznik was absent and excused from the meeting.

“The increase is effective May 1, 2011, so it will be retroactive to that date,” said Greg Fuchs, president of the Professional Firefighters of Lake Zurich Local 3191.

Statewide, the average approved salary increase is 1.9 percent for the first year for other departments, according to Fuchs.

That number, which is slightly higher than the agreement reached in Lake Zurich, is also reflective of the northern district, which includes Lake County and a couple of Cook County departments, like Wheeling and Arlington Heights.

In years two and three of the contract, a 2 percent increase will be given.

Fuchs said union membership approved the salary increase portion of the deal in early September prior to the board of trustees vote.

Concessions were made on both sides.

“We certainly came in with a higher salary increase request, and the village came in with a substantially lower one, but we both were able to give in to come to an agreement,” Fuchs said.

“We all have to give a little, but it appears to be a fair deal; we’re in tough times,” said Trustee Tom Poynton.

Previously offered insurance options, including an HMO and a PPO, remain unchanged. But, the village did present a third, higher-deductible PPO option that likely would benefit individuals who heavily use their insurance.

Per the new contract, the village will cover the cost of a new state requirement to renew paramedics’ licenses every four years.

Previously, the re-license fee was $40, but the state has not made public if that fee will be increased, Fuchs said.

He added that in his seven years on the Local 3191 board, this year’s negotiations were the least contentious and by far the most productive.

“This year was the best process we’ve been through,” Fuchs said. “There was a tremendous amount of cooperation from the village, with both open dialogue and communication.”

The contract is in effect until April 30, 2014.