PORTSMOUTH, Va. — Firefighters in Portsmouth say they need more support, and now they have a new way to try and get it.
For the first time since the Virginia General Assembly passed legislation during the 2020 legislative session, they can use a collective bargaining process to negotiate work conditions with Portsmouth City Council.
According to a resolution passed in September 2020, Portsmouth City Council has until the end of May 2021 to approve an ordinance that allows the continuation of the collective bargaining process.
Local 539 represents an overwhelming majority of firefighters in the City of Portsmouth. While details of negotiations and initial proposals are still months away, President Kurt Detrick says the union will focus on work conditions beyond pay compensation.
“Pay compression across Hampton Roads in public safety is a problem, so one of the things collective bargaining does is create a pay structure and help avoid that," Detrick said, who is also with the Portsmouth Professional Firefighters and Paramedics. “Fire service is changing rapidly over the last 30 years, we’re not just responding to house fires.”
Pay compression has less to do with starting salaries but is more about payment for tenured employees.
“Employees are tenured remain about the same, and the starting pay is compressed to what tenured employees are making. That’s a big issue across Hampton Roads in public safety,” Detrick said.
Here are several non-recruit/ trainee starting salaries across several Hampton Roads cities:
- Norfolk: $42,450
- Chesapeake: $44,326
- Portsmouth: $42,500
Collective bargaining will also help with staff retention, according to Detrick, and prevent firefighters from leaving for other jurisdictions across a competitive region for fire service.
“If we can’t put people on the firetrucks, there’s nobody to show up when you call 911.”
Portsmouth City Council next meets on May 11 and May 25.