The dust has finally settled between the Moose Jaw Fire Fighters Association and the City of Moose Jaw, after dispatchers were terminated last summer.

The city moved the service to the provincial call centre in Prince Albert, then set about discussing severance packages for the affected employees with their union, the Moose Jaw Fire Fighters Association. 

Those failed bargaining talks led to the MJFFA filing an Unfair Labour Practice suit against the City. The hearings were held in March and on June 17, the Saskatchewan Labour Relations Board ruled in favour of the union and ordered the two sides back to the bargaining table. 

Even before the ruling, the Fire Fighters and City negotiators were in discussions for a new contract, and came to an agreement Tuesday night (June 21). 

"They're angry with what has kind of happened over the last year," said MJFFA President Gord Hewitt, referring to the affected employees. "At the end of the day we did come to agreement that we'll see the dispatchers were fired will receive additional severance."

He said the final number is not much more than the city's original offer last year of 3 months pay per employee, but it was time to end the contentious negotiations.

"We were told, basically by the city, they need a lawyer from Toronto.. so if he came out for the Unfair Labour Practice (hearing) that all additional severance was off the table. So, it was zero up until two weeks ago, or last week."

Hewitt also mentioned even though it's not much more than the original offer, it was easier to swallow.

"Because there was four (dispatchers) at the time, one of them got another job as the office manager. It's basically twelves months now split between three of them, based on years of service. Essentially it'll be 5 months for one, 4 months...and 3 months. So, it's a little bit more for two more of them, but it's certainly less than the tentative agreement we had come to with the city."

Initially, negotiators for the city, which included Human Resources Manager Al Bromley and Fire Chief Rod Montgomery, agreed to give 2 weeks pay/year of service to the laid off dispatchers, but city council's Personnel Committee rejected that offer and forced negotiators to return to the original proposal. 

It's because of that sequence of events that the LRB ruled the city did not bargain in good faith.

"The city believes in bargaining in good faith, I think that's an important statement for us to make," said Bromley after the new severance deal had been struck. "While the city disagrees with LRB decision, it does not intend to challenge it."

Speaking to the initial offer made in 2015, the city said in a news release "on July 13, 2015, the City’s Personnel Committee had provided Administration with an initial monetary mandate to offer for severance. This severance was over and above the statutory requirement spelled out in the Saskatchewan Employment Act and the collective agreement with the IAFF. City Administration offered it as a gesture of goodwill to the outgoing employees."

“The parties acted cordially and agreed to negotiate all outstanding labour relations issues relating to the reorganization within the Moose Jaw Fire Department during that session," added Montgomery, speaking to the most recent round of talks. "We  understand the Association executive recommended the deal and we know as a fact that the Association membership ratified the settlement."

Poor communication is what Bromley describes as the problem as to why the two groups were unable to come to an agreement earlier.

"I guess in a vague sense we probably had to be more clear in our communication at that table, and that's probably the one aspect that our committee regrets, that we were not more clear and assertive in our communication."