The city and the Houston firefighters union are headed back to mediation Thursday under an order from the 14th Court of Appeals, the latest attempt to settle a pay dispute that has covered much of Mayor Sylvester Turner's first term in office.
The session will mark the third try at reaching a contract via mediation between Turner and the Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association, who in May appealed a ruling from a state district judge that struck down Proposition B, the voter-approved measure granting firefighters the same pay as police officers of similar rank and experience.
The two sides agreed earlier this month to have Houston attorney Daryl Bristow serve as mediator.
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The judge's decision to rule Prop B void came soon after a court-appointed mediator declared negotiations between the city and firefighters at an impasse. Both sides tried to settle contract talks in a June 2017 mediation session, too, but the talks stalled and the union sued the city in a separate case.
The lawsuit seeking to toss Prop B was filed in November last year by the Houston Police Officers' Union, who also sued the city. The city later filed its own claim in the case, joining the police union in alleging Prop B is unconstitutional.
Turner, asked Wednesday if he expects this round of mediation to produce a different result than the first two, said he would "walk in with the intent to resolve" the dispute and remains "positive and optimistic."
The mayor also said he would come prepared "with what I know the city can afford to pay." The firefighters have disagreed with Turner's claim that the city could not afford the cost of Prop B without laying off firefighters, a major source of acrimony between the two sides.
Turner also has rejected firefighters' request to settle the dispute in arbitration. When Turner shot down that request in May, fire union President Marty Lancton called arbitration a "sensible solution."
Lancton repeatedly has said firefighters "remain open to working with the city," while accusing Turner of rejecting "every sensible offer — in court, in several rounds of mediation, and in previous contract negotiations."
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