Wednesday night, firefighters in Marietta let the City Council know that the city could be losing veterans to other cities.
The reason?
11 Alive reported that earlier this year, the City Council approved raises of 9 percent for new firefighters, but the veterans got nothing
The veterans understand that the newer firefighters need the higher pay to come on board, but as a result, the veterans end up making less in some cases.
“I didn’t start the job for the money,” retired Marietta firefighter Ron Presley told 11Alive after the meeting. “I didn’t really care about the money, but you have to live on something.”
Presley, who just retired from the Marietta Fire Department after 20 years, said he was making only $18.40 an hour.
“I was here 20 years,” he said, “and you had guys that were here six years that were making more than I. So, the pay scale’s just kind of all screwed up right now.”
