Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District settled a three-year contract with its paramedic-firefighters with a 7-percent salary increase the first year followed by an increase equal to the national consumer price index-U over the next two years, with a minimum of 2 percent and a maximum of 4 percent.
“We agreed to give them a 7-percent increase this year, which puts them in the middle-high range of EMT-firefighters,” SHFAD Board Chairman Don Hopkins said. “We agreed upon an insurance cap for this year of $874.”
In years two and three of the contract, the paramedics will split any insurance increases 50-50. Full family insurance is $942.70 per month. For a husband and wife, the premium is $633.80. For a single person, the premium is $294.40.
All fire department employees will receive the same insurance benefit.
“We averted mediation by going ahead and settling,” Hopkins said. Both parties had already requested mediation, “then the board gave them what we felt was the best we could possibly do.”
Mediation would have cost some $10,000 in attorney fees and representation.
“The districts of similar size and nature that they use as comparables indicated we were pretty low,” Hopkins said. “What this does is bring it to medium high.”
The board had attempted to settle for a lesser amount, he said, but it was unsuccessful.
“We value the work our employees do, and we want them to be rewarded with a comparable salary because we want to keep our employees.”
At one time, Sweet Home paramedics would go to work here then, after gaining experience, move on to bigger, better-paying positions elsewhere, Hopkins said.
The contract applies to four paramedics, Tim Walker, Jake Thompson, Shannon Hamilton and Ken Weld. At the high end of the pay scale, two paramedics will go from $43,212 per year to $46,231. At the low end, two paramedics will go from $35,500 to $38,032.
Other personnel were give 5 percent increases, based on a policy created when fire service was still a part of the City of Sweet Home’s services. That policy established a percentage difference between employee pay and supervisor pay.
Fire Chief Mike Beaver’s salary will increase from $62,500 to $65,125.
Battalion chiefs include Doug Emmert, Guy Smith and Dave Barringer. Two battalion chiefs at the top end of the pay scale will receive an increase from $52,284 to $54,898. At the low end, one battalion chief will receive an increase from $49,788 to $52,277.
Administrative clerk Diane Shank receives an increase from $33,204 to $34,864.
Those increases allow the district to maintain the percentage differences required under the policy created by the city, Hopkins said.