CEDAR FALLS, IA—The union representing Cedar Falls firefighters is taking the city to court for allegedly favoring police officers over firefighters in filling leadership spots under the combined public safety operations.
Attorneys for International Association of Firefighters Local 1366 allege career firefighters were quickly eliminated from consideration for seven public safety lieutenant and two public safety captain positions the City Council approved last month.
The jobs went instead to candidates who had been city police department employees, according a request for an injunction filed Friday in Black Hawk County District Court.
Union President Scott Dix said six of the nine employees who were promoted have never worked a single day as a full-time firefighter.
“The decision of the city ignores the importance of training and experience when it comes to keeping citizens safe,” Dix said in a prepared statement. “Full-time firefighters from within the fire department, or at least someone from a similar department with the needed training and experience, should have been offered these important positions.”
City officials said the matter has been referred to the city’s labor counsel and is under review.
Mayor Jim Brown said the city is confident in its promotions processes and intends to vigorously defend the lawsuit.
“I have extreme confidence in our public safety professionals and the promotional process of our Public Safety Department, which goes through the civil service commission as required by state laws,” Brown said in a prepared statement. “We greatly value all of our dedicated public safety professionals. We are confident that all members of our public safety team are highly qualified, well-trained and absolutely committed to protecting our City and its people.”
Attorney David Ricksecker of Washington, D.C., who is representing the union, said the move violated state laws that bar people without the physical training and experience from holding fire department positions.
The union’s court filing also claims the city has diluted the requirements for the position of fire captain at the department, rolling back the certifications and experience needed to hold the post.
Under the chain of command, the new public safety captain positions would outrank fire department personnel including fire captains and battalion chiefs, everyone except the fire chief himself. Public safety lieutenants would outrank fire captains, even though the public safety lieutenant spot requires less firefighting experience, according to the union. The suit said the same is true for the new public safety captains in relation to fire battalion chiefs.
The union also alleges candidates who came from the police department didn’t have to undergo the same physical testing firefighters are put through when hired.
The union is asking the court for an injunction preventing the city from carrying out the promotions, which had been set to be formalized last Saturday.
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