DEERFIELD BEACH, FL -- State officials have agreed to investigate a complaint by fire union officials that the city has forced new firefighters to sign a loyalty oath.
The dispute centers on a memo drafted by City Manager Larry Deetjen in which 21 new firefighters agreed to forfeit accrued vacation time and repay the city for training and equipment if they leave their jobs before 2015.
Union attorney Matt Mierzwa filed the complaint on Monday after failing to convince city officials last month that they must negotiate such an agreement with the union before taking the memo to firefighters.
A hearing will be set within 30 days, said June Farrell, clerk with the Public Employee Relations Commission in Tallahassee, a state agency that handles disputes involving public employees.
Deetjen, who could not be reached for comment on Wednesday, has said the memo is an attempt to keep the city from becoming a training ground for firefighters who later leave for higher salaries at bigger departments.
In the complaint, Mierzwa also claims the city violated the rights of new firefighters by forbidding them to support a possible merger with the Broward Sheriff's Office.
