labor firegeezer on 29 Aug 2007 06:17 pm
Billings FD Plan To Add Paramedics Is On Hold
THE BILLINGS, MONTANA FIRE DEPARTMENT wants to upgrade enough firefighters to paramedic level to have one on each engine. But a long-running back-pay lawsuit is putting all plans on hold for now.
In 2000 the firefighters file a class-action suit for back pay because they had been paid for 40 hrs. per week for five years while they were actually working 43.5 hours. After 6 years of working through the appellate courts, the state Supreme Court ruled this month that the city has to pay plus a 55% penalty and attorney’s fees. The potential bill could be as high as $5.4 million.
The Billings FD has 103 field FF’s and six stations.
The Billings Gazette has a good, informative article HERE.
Billings FD homepage HERE.
