*Authorize a Letter of Agreement between the City, Portland Fire & Rescue, and the Portland Fire Fighters’ Association, International Association of Fire Fighters Local 43 to amend the Collective Bargaining Agreement to incentivize the hiring of lateral firefighters

The City of Portland ordains: Section 1. The Council finds: The City and the Portland Police Association are parties to a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) for the period of July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2023. The Union is the sole collective bargaining representative on behalf of employees working in classifications listed in Schedule A of the CBA. Schedule A in the CBA requires that a laterally hired firefighter start at the entry rate of pay. The City and Union have an interest incentivizing the hiring of lateral firefighters. The City and the PFFA have an interest in entering into a Letter of Agreement (LOA) to incentivize the hiring of lateral firefighters by amending portions of Article 8- Wages, Salaries and Allowances, and Article 10 - Vacation Leave in the CBA. The incentives in an LOA would authorize the hiring of lateral firefighters above the entry rate of pay and vacation in a manner commiserate with certain paid professional experience as a firefighter with a Fire agency outside of Portland Fire & Rescue (PF&R), and provide for additional pay for lateral firefighters with existing paramedic certification. NOW, THEREFORE, the Council directs: The Director of the Bureau of Human Resources is authorized to enter into a Letter of Agreement between the City and PFFA to address the interests stated in the findings in this ordinance. Section 2. The Council declares that an emergency exists because delay would unnecessarily delay the orderly implementation of the provisions of this Letter of Agreement; therefore, this ordinance shall be in full force and effect after its passage by the Council.