A new labor contract between the city of Anchorage and the union representing fire-fighters could lead to savings for tax-payers.
A collaborative deal was reached between the municipality and the local chapter of the International Association of Firefighters, whose members voted in favor of the contract in May, according to documents submitted to the Anchorage Assembly. It’s a proactive move that set out new terms almost a year before the current contract was set to expire on June 30th of 2018.
If members of the Anchorage Assembly approve the agreement, firefighters will see just one pay raise of 1.5 percent in the next three years. That’s a change from the yearly wage increases of the same amount under the last contract. The municipality will, however, increase its monthly benefit contribution to $2,534 for each employee by 2020, $541 than the current amount.
According to the city’s Office of Management and Budget Director Lance Wilber, the contract will save the city $2.3 million over the next three years compared to if the current contract were left in place.
The municipality has had to close budget gaps in recent years through increased property taxes as income sources and the state’s revenue sharing to local governments have declined
Zachariah Hughes reports on city & state politics, arts & culture, drugs, and military affairs in Anchorage and South Central Alaska.
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