LETTERS

Vote on firefighter contract outlined

Posted 1/9/20

To the Editor: On January 6, after over 12 hours of debate, the City Council voted to ratify the new three-year firefighters contract. I would like to thank all the members of our community who contacted me to share their thoughts about why they either

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LETTERS

Vote on firefighter contract outlined

Posted

To the Editor:

On January 6, after over 12 hours of debate, the City Council voted to ratify the new three-year firefighters contract. I would like to thank all the members of our community who contacted me to share their thoughts about why they either supported or opposed this contract. I made sure to listen to each person who called, texted or emailed. Some I had the chance to speak with for over an hour. Others I had the privilege of talking with on a number of occasions. These conversations ranged from examining particular aspects of the contract to learning from members of our community about their overall feelings about the contract. At the recent council meeting I outlined how I came to my decision to vote in favor of ratification. These are the comments I made: This is a negotiated package that was a series of compromises between two parties. Parts of it I like, other parts I do not like. As a councilman, I have to look at this contract as a whole. We on the council cannot change a comma. Tonight we are tasked with a yes or no vote. I think we should take a step back and look at what is in the contract. Wages: 0% increase in year one, 2% increase in year two, 2% increase in year three. This will save the City over $400,000 in the first year. The union agreed to give back 7 days to the city: 1 holiday, 4 sick days, and 2 personal days. This saves the taxpayers money. Structural changes for when new firefighters attain certain grades: It will take them an additional year to move up to the next grade, which saves the taxpayers money. 24 Hour shift schedule: This should reduce overtime costs. However, if it does not, the city can go back to the shift schedule we currently have. What should be highlighted is for the first time the city gets management rights to decide the best shift schedule for the taxpayers.

Settles the Tier 2 issue: Makes it crystal clear in the contract. The city lost on this issue. We fought it and lost. This will settle it once and for all.

Unprecedented OPEB trust for new hires: New firefighters will pay 2% each pay period toward their healthcare costs in retirement. This should be an example for other contracts going forward. Had we implemented this for new hires twenty years ago we would be in a much better position today.

This contract also clears up language on unused sick time payouts. This saves the taxpayers money.

What happens if we vote no tonight?

This entire agreement is null and void. We go back to arbitration. Everything negotiated in this TA (tentative agreement) goes away. It is not like the city gets to keep all these things then ask for more. We go back into arbitration, where the only guarantee is more legal costs for the city. We could lose all the givebacks I listed, plus we could put the taxpayers on the hook for many more costs.

For example, this contract calls for 0% increase in year one, 2% increase in year two, 2% increase in year three for wages. In arbitration this could be changed to anything. It could be decided the city has to pay 3%, 3%, 3% for those same three years because other contracts called for that in the past. There are other issues out there like minimum manning increases that could be a huge increase cost to the taxpayers.

No three-year contract is going to undo years of negotiations and contracts. Everyone in this room understands healthcare costs need to be addressed. This contract starts addressing healthcare for new hires going forward. But, we won’t stop there. I am willing to work with the council, mayor, fire department, and taxpayers to come up with a plan to address this issue. We all need to come together and everyone should be at the table.

Tonight before this council is a fair contract that has compromises from both sides. It includes a number of incremental improvements that put the city in a much better situation than we were in before.

Going back into arbitration, losing all the negotiated gains would be a huge gamble with the taxpayers’ money.

Therefore, I believe this contract puts us in a positive direction, and I will be supporting it tonight.

Steve McAllister

City Council Ward 7

Comments

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  • LOOKTHATWAYINSTEAD

    IS MY COUNCILOR FOR REAL? THE LAST LINE IN THIS LETTER TO THE EDITOR SAYS IT ALL! "I WILL BE STRONGLY SUPPORTING IT TONIGHT" ? REALLY? CLEARLY SHOWS HE HAD HIS MIND MADE UP PRIOR TO THE TESTIMONY PROVIDED AT THE LAST MEETING. THANKS FOR KEEPING AN OPEN MIND DURING THE FINAL AND MOST IMPORTANT MEETING. SO GLAD I WASTED MY TIME CALLING YOU. THANKS FOR THE LIP SERVICE! WHEN WILL WARD SEVEN GET A FIGHTER? I LONG FOR THE DAYS OF AL GEMMA! BOY DID HE FIGHT FOR THE RESIDENTS AND TAXPAYERS!! I HOPE HE SEES THIS SNEAK AND COMES OUT OF RETIREMENT TO TAKE THIS SHILL DOWN.

    BY THE WAY COUNCILOR I HEARD AT THE MEETING ( I HOPE ITS NOT TRUE) THAT YOUR BROTHER IN LAW WAS JUST HIRED AT THE BOARD OF CANVASERS BY MAYOR SOLOMON. WILL YOU PLEASE ADDRESS THAT ISSUE IN YOUR NEXT "OUTLINE" LETTER TO THE BEACON, SO WE KNOW IT'S NOT THE CASE? IF THAT IS TRUE YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED, THAT WOULD BE AWFUL.

    SAD, SO SAD, TAXPAYERS NEVER STOOD A FAIR CHANCE WITH THESE BEAUTS. KUDOS TO THE 4 STRONG BACKBONES WHO AT LEAST ASKED THE RIGHT QUESTIONS AND TRIED TO INJECT FAIRNESS.

    GEMMA 2020 !

    Thursday, January 9, 2020 Report this

  • bendover

    Steve: Where are you going to come up with the BITCOINS?

    Thursday, January 9, 2020 Report this

  • patientman

    Look that way,

    Who is Gemma 2020? Please tell me it's someone that will make sure the contract they vote for has clarity.

    Thursday, January 9, 2020 Report this

  • Jsimmy230

    Mccallister takes money from WFD Union. He is liar, and just trying to make people think he actually thought about this. He was one of the 5 council people that went behind the back of the Council President and his colleague the chairman of the finance committee, and had them served by a constable to attend a special meeting on Friday before christmas. Who paid for the service of these council members, the taxpayers? Instead of just making a phone call. He wasn't even smart enough to have himself served, which violated the law, and forced his 4 cohorts on Council, the Mayor, and ALL his friends on the WFD to wait more than 2 weeks to jam this joke of a contract down the taxpayers throats. DOPE!

    I say to all in City ... REMEMBER IN NOVEMBER.

    Throw out Solomon, Howe, Mccallister, Travis, Sinapi, and McElroy! Any idiots can do a better job for Warwick and its taxpayers!

    Thursday, January 9, 2020 Report this

  • Thecaptain

    Mcallister,

    You are a fraud and a liar. I received dozens of emails from constituents that called, emailed, and sent you text messages that you never answered. You have been bought and paid for by Solomon but for what payoff? I will find out. You sold your community down the river for a favor from fat joe.

    Here's some information about Pom Pom Boy Stevie. In June of 2016 immediately after he declared to run for council I sat with him and showed him all of the documentation of how the WFD was stealing from the taxpayers. Each time I received official documents I shared them with him. He presented himself as disgusted and looked me in the eye and told me that if he got elected he would demand an executive meeting to get to the bottom of it. He also sat with me at my marina in the company of 2 other residents of ward 7 and told them the same.

    After his election I gathered documentation on certain members of the WFD that were using the "Change of Shift" to go to work on other prevailing wage projects. In particular, at URI Green Hall. I had the documents from the RI Division of purchasing and also from the clerk of the works of the project with the names of the individuals, dates on site, contract documents, invoices etc... I asked Pom Pom Boy to obtain the WFD Form 109 Change of Shift document. For weeks he told me that he would get the documents for me but this was all lip service and he never did do anything to obtain these documents which was his obligation to do so after being asked to do so by a constituent. He was proven to be a liar.

    It soon became apparent immediately after April 18th when Quid-Pro-Joe became the mayor that he was no longer allowed to speak to me. Since that date, no answers of emails, no return calls. Mcallister had reviewed hundreds of pages of documents that proved that the WFD was stealing through the "SIDE DEALS". He ignored it and did nothing.

    When Mcallister received that data and complaints made to the Department of Records Retention that the WFD was destroying documents relative to leave, he did nothing. Numerous emails were sent to him with the regulations and the data of the missing documents and Mcallister did nothing. He had first hand knowledge of theft activity yet he did nothing.

    Mcallister voted in favor of hiring the third party CPA/CFE firm that was awarded $60,000 to perform the investigation of the unused sick time scheme, but as of this date, that report has not been made public, Mcallister has been questioned about it, yet he remains silent. During the budget hearings of 2019, he sat silent and the few questions that he did ask proved that he had never read or reviewed any of the contracts, and had no understanding of them. He was invited to meet with constituents at the Warwick Public Library, yet refused to show up and answer questions.

    On Monday night he read from a statement prepared by Solomon. On Dec. 16th, I asked him direct questions at the council meeting which can be heard by going to the link of the Dec. 16th meeting

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ke9YN2Ix6Ko&t=6478s

    and begin listening at the 8:40 mark until the 17:00 mark and watch Mcallister ignore and avoid every question asked of him, even after the legal council indicated that persons had the right to ask specific questions of council members. Is that who you want as your representative? When the people showed up in force and were bitterly opposed to Solomon hiring Councilman McElroy's daughter as a judge, did Mcallister listen to his constituents? No, he ignored them. It is time for Mcallister to go. He is there to push the Solomon agenda and ignore his responsibilities to his community. He has been bought and paid for and needs to be taken out.

    Thursday, January 9, 2020 Report this

  • Warwickbeautiful

    With a population of 80,000+ residents, the only two chronic complainers in the city are a disgraced former police officer who was facing termination and retired with a bogus disability pension and a failed business owner with a grudge against the fire department, and a long arrest record for making threatening phone calls, harassment, and nearly blowing up an entire neighborhood after recklessly pouring gasoline down a storm drain. Not exactly model citizens by any stretch of the imagination, and surely not credible in their comments.

    Friday, January 10, 2020 Report this

  • Thecaptain

    Now Jimmy (Brandon Ingengneri) has a new alias - Educated Voter. Clearly not educated and full of lies which are commonly called slander. This is the same guy that doctored a video and sent it ti channel 12, the same guy who is under investigation by the US Postal inspector for sending harassing letters through the mail, and the same guy who just filed a false police report stating that certain people were plotting his murder. Brandon Ingegneri, the disgraced tattooed gang member Warwick fire union thug. Just more lies from dysfunctional disturbed individual.

    From: Brandon Ingegneri [mailto:brandon.igg85@gmail.com]

    Sent: Sat 12/21/2019 12:38 PM

    To: John Howell

    Subject: Fire Contract - Threats

    https://www.facebook.com/robert.cushman1/videos/10215985589773155/

    Good Morning Mr. Howell,

    Embedded into this email is a link to a video that Robert Cushman and

    Robert Cote posted of last night's City Council Meeting. If you listen to

    the time frame in the area of 32:25 in the video you can clearly hear Mr.

    Cushman and Mr. Cote threaten to "Kill" me as I was addressing the council.

    I have since filed a report with the RISP, but thought it prudent to

    forward this information to you as a credible threat to murder a public

    employee and elected officer of a labor union at a public venue is most

    certainly a serious event. Additionally, I have received a number of

    harassing telephone calls from Mr. Cote and Mr. Cushman following this

    threat.

    I am available for public comment at your convenience.

    Very Truly Yours,

    Brandon Ingegneri

    Treasurer

    Warwick Firefighters, Local 2748

    Oh by the way, the COWARD refused to go on air and talk about his false police report. BRANDON THE COWARD INGENGNERI.

    Friday, January 10, 2020 Report this

  • Reality

    McAllister aka Pom Pom Boy must be delusional. It was obvious during the vetting of the WFD contract that McAllister didn't read it or understand it.

    The same could be said for Howe, Traves, McElroy and Sinapi. Their total lack of questioning was incredible. This contract commits the taxpayers to million of dollars of obligations in the future.

    Warwick can no longer afford retiree healthcare for anyone. It has to stop. Solomon ran on the platform of change but in reality he became Avedisian on steroids.

    McAllister and his amigos can try all the spin they want....this WFD contract sticks it to the taxpayers.

    PS. Did Sue Baker write McAllister statement that he read Monday night? He certainly didn't do it.

    Friday, January 10, 2020 Report this

  • Jsimmy230

    Educated Voter now Brandon ... you are a liar and a joke..lmao

    I'm a disgraced former police officer ....... but I use my real name, that's how disgraced I was/am. I wear the fact that I fought corruption in Providence then, like I do now in Warwick, as a badge of honor. Unlike you COWARDS that just go along to get along, or to get something in the future. You are supposed to be a so called public safety servant, but instead you only serve yourself. You should all be ashamed of yourselfs. Cellar dwellers that have no idea of what real fireman do, but get paid as if you were real fire fighters and public servants. Everyone knows that chumps that are afraid to use their real names are just IMPOSTERS. They always get what's coming to them, sooner or later. Enjoy your fantasy world while you can.

    Friday, January 10, 2020 Report this

  • Warwickbeautiful

    "I'm a disgraced former police officer ....... but I use my real name, that's how disgraced I was/am."

    Looks like Johnny Pajamas has finally spoken the truth.

    Friday, January 10, 2020 Report this

  • Jsimmy230

    Another fake name IDIOT that can't read.

    I was quoting what EDUCATED VOTER SAID ABOUT ME.

    OK, I'M DONE TRYING TO HAVE A DISCUSSION WITH FAKE NAME, COWARDS THAT CAN'T READ. Like a bunch of kindergartners here on WFD.

    I'll be back when the COWARDS on this thread want to give real names.

    Friday, January 10, 2020 Report this

  • davebarry109

    The councilman is worried about legal costs in the tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands NOW vs. Tens or hundreds of millions LATER. It is this short term thinking that has us where we are.

    Friday, January 10, 2020 Report this

  • Thecaptain

    Debate this:

    https://www.wpri.com/fox-providence/dan-yorke-state-of-mind/dysom-12-10-2019-watchdog-ris-ken-block-warwick-resident-rob-cote/

    Friday, January 10, 2020 Report this

  • tcp

    Question: a few critics of this contract have pointed out that the fire union has contributed to certain councilors campaigns. Possibly the 5 that voted in favor but I am NOT 100% sure). Is that surprising? My question is, why on earth would they not? Why would they not support those who support them? Does anyone expect them to donate to Merolla? I’m a Baltimore Orioles fan so you won’t see me at Dicks Sporting Goods buying a Red Sox Jersey.

    Saturday, January 11, 2020 Report this

  • Jsimmy230

    TPC

    No elected official should take contributions from any employee that works for them, or any organization that they are involved with deciding contracts for. It doesn't matter to me if it is legal to do it. The appearance of impropriety should mean something to these so-called leaders of the community. Even if it is "legal", it is wrong. Period. The five corrupt, bought and paid for Council members that pushed through this sham WFD contract should be ashamed of themselves. In three meetings about the contract THEY ASKED NO LEGITIMATE QUESTIONS. Even when legitimate issues, and problems, were brought to their attention THEY ASKED NOTHING. That is just disgusting. It doesn't take much intelligence to realize that the 5 had their minds made up already AND NO FACTS WOULD HAVE CHANGED THEIR MINDS. REALLY SAD SITUATION. Now, the voters will have a chance to do likewise.

    REMEMBER IN NOVEMBER AND VOTE OUT MAYOR SOLOMON, AND HIS 5 CLOWN COUNCIL MEMBERS ....HOWE, MCCALLISTER, TRAVIS, SINAPI, AND sleepy McELROY (never heard him speak at any meeting I've attended since he was elected)... They all need to go people, NOW, or get ready for supplemental taxes being demanded next, because 4%, the maximum yearly tax increases by law, WILL NOT BE ENOUGH !

    Saturday, January 11, 2020 Report this

  • tcp

    You may as well get rid of Rix while you’re at it. Talking about your upcoming wedding that you may have seen on Facebook and comparing the venue contract to this? Come on. Mr. Simoneau I know you probably appreciate his “no” vote but this guy is in over his head.

    Sunday, January 12, 2020 Report this

  • Jsimmy230

    TPC

    I can't disagree with your statement.

    God bless. Us all!

    Sunday, January 12, 2020 Report this

  • jimmy2times

    At no point were any documents destroyed. They were documented on paper and in a computer system. Change of shifts are of no detriment to the city, costs them nothing. You ever think people don't want to cooperate with you because everyone knows you're a whacko and you mission reeks of revenge. Keep spreading lies Rob. Isn't there a funeral you could crash or animal you could kill. All of this criminal behavior and not one charge. At what point will you realize you have nothing.

    Wednesday, January 15, 2020 Report this