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HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution No. 288-25 - Resolution - Contract IAFF Local 520 - 2026-2028 RESOLUTION Approving the Collective Bargaining Agreement with the International Association of Firefighters, Local 520 (Union) for the calendar years 2026-28. WHEREAS, the Union and the City of Rochester are parties to an existing Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) that expired on December 31, 2025; and WHEREAS, representatives of the Union and representatives of the City of Rochester have negotiated a three-year Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) for the term of January 1, 2026 - December 31, 2028; and WHEREAS, Attachment A summarizes the changes negotiated to the existing CBA between the parties. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Common Council of the City of Rochester approves and ratifies the attached changes to the 2026-2028 CBA with the International Association of Firefighters, Local 520. PASSED AND ADOPTED BY THE COMMON COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ROCHESTER, MINNESOTA, THIS __________ DAY OF _______________, 2025. ___________________________________ PRESIDENT OF SAID COMMON COUNCIL ATTEST: __________________________ CITY CLERK APPROVED THIS _____ DAY OF ______________________, 2025. ___________________________________ MAYOR OF SAID CITY (Seal of the City of Rochester, Minnesota) 1 | Page ATTACHMENT A 2023-2025 International Association of Firefighters, Local 520 Summary of Collective Bargaining Agreement Changes Article 4 – Hours of Work C. Hours of work that constitute overtime compensation shall be governed by the Fair Labor Standards Act or by the provisions of this Agreement. All hours worked in excess of forty (40) per week by non-shift employees shall be considered as overtime hours. All hours worked in excess of twenty-four (24) hours per shift by shift employees shall be considered as overtime hours. The rate for overtime for non-shift employees shall be the employee’s salary divided by two thousand eighty (2,080) times one and one-half (1 ½). The rate for overtime for shift employees shall be the employee’s salary divided by two thousand nine hundred twelve (2,912) times one point six three (1.63). When a shift employee is temporarily assigned to a 40-hour work week for training purposes, they shall receive overtime for all hours worked in excess of forty (40) per week at one and one-half (1 ½) times their equivalent non-shift rate. E. The following provisions shall apply when additional employees are needed for an emergency situation. 2. When an off-duty, shift employee firefighter agrees to or is ordered to respond, they shall report for duty with-in thirty (30) minutes of acceptance/order and shall be paid at 1.85 times their normal hourly rate overtime at the rate specified in Article 4, paragraph C, from the time of acceptance/order and shall be paid a minimum of three (3) hours. When an off-duty employee on a 40-hour per week schedule agrees to or is ordered to respond, they shall report for duty with-in thirty (30) minutes of acceptance/order and shall be paid at 1.5 times their 2080 rate from the time of acceptance/order and shall be paid a minimum of three (3) hours. If the firefighter employee does not report for duty within the thirty (30) minutes, they shall be paid from the time of arrival. This Section 4.E.2. shall not apply to an employee who is responding from an on-call/standby status. 6. When a firefighter on shift is physically present at their scheduled work site and accepts a request or is ordered to work either: before the scheduled start time for their shift or continue to work past the scheduled end time of their shift; they shall be paid at the overtime rate of one point six three (1.63) times their normal hourly rate for the hours actually worked and the three (3) hour call-back minimum under Subparagraph 4 of this Section E shall not apply. A Firefighter’s scheduled start and end time for purposes of this Agreement is 0800 to 0800. 2 | Page Article 5 – Holidays A. Non-shift employees covered by this Agreement shall receive the following paid holidays subject to the limitations below: 1. New Year's Day 8. Veteran's Day 2. Martin Luther King's Day 9. Thanksgiving Day 3. President's Day 10. Day after Thanksgiving Day 4. Memorial Day 11. One-half (1/2) day Christmas Eve Day 5. Juneteenth 12. One-half (1/2) day New Year's Eve Day 6. Independence Day 13. Christmas Day 7. Labor Day B. Work performed on the actual day of the above holidays by eligible non-shift employees shall be paid for at one and one-half (1 1/2) times the normal hourly rate in addition to the holiday pay. C. Any non-shift employee who is on vacation that extends through a holiday period shall not be charged for a day or days of vacation for the holiday. D. Whenever any of the listed holidays falls on a Saturday, except December 24th or December 31st, the preceding Friday shall be observed as a holiday. E. Whenever any of the listed holidays falls on Sunday, except December 24th and December 31st, the following Monday shall be observed as a holiday. F. In the event Christmas Eve falls on a Sunday, it will be observed as a holiday on the preceding Friday. In the event Christmas Day falls on a Saturday, it will be observed as a holiday on the following Monday. Article 6 – Vacations G. When an employee is scheduled for vacation and requires a physician's care or is hospitalized for a minimum of three (3) consecutive days, one (1) of which is a scheduled vacation day and providing they submit written evidence that they would be unable to use the vacation as desired, the employee may reschedule their vacation days lost. When an employee is on vacation and requires a physician's care or is hospitalized for a minimum of three (3) consecutive days, two (2) of which are scheduled vacation days and providing they submits written evidence that they would be unable to use the vacation as desired, the employee may reschedule their vacation days lost. Firefighters hired before 1/1/03, who have not depleted their vacation saved balances prior to retirement or termination, authorize the City of Rochester to deposit an amount equal to any remaining vacation saved balance in an individual Minnesota State Retirement System (MSRS) Health Care Savings Plan (HCSP). However, when an employee has applied for and been granted an irrevocable waiver of participation by MSRS and provided to the Employer written documentation of such waiver; amounts payable for vacation 3 | Page saved, in the event of an eligible employee’s separation, shall be paid to the employee rather than to the MSRS Health Care Savings Plan. Such payments to the employee shall be subject to the normal payroll withholdings as required by law. No additional hours shall be placed in saved account after 12/31/02. The new vacation cap applied after the last pay date in 2003 and each December thereafter will be no more than two (2) times the annual vacation accrual. Article 7 - Sick Leave and Paid Family Medical Leave A. Sick leave with pay will be granted for a bona fide personal illness, medical examination, medical treatment, legal quarantine, dental care, and for pre-natal examination. Shift employees will make every effort to schedule and take routine medical/dental examinations and appointments on their normal days off. When an employee is eligible for worker's compensation payments from the City, he/shethey may supplement these payments with a prorated portion of his/hertheir sick leave so that the combination of the two (2) will equal regular pay. When his/hertheir sick leave account is exhausted, he/shethey will receive worker's compensation payments only. st C. No sick leave shall be granted to an employee during the first (1) month of their employment, but shall accrue from the start of their regular employment.Sick leave shall begin accruing from the start of their employment. E. Employees using earned sick leave shall be considered to be working for the purpose of accumulating additional vacation leave or sick leave. Only days that an employee would normally have worked will be charged against his/hertheir sick leave account. F. Employees claiming sick leave may be required to file competent written evidence that they have been absent as authorized. The documentation provisions referenced in the Earned Sick and Safe Time Act, MS 181.9447, Subd 3, shall not apply to paid leave available to an employee for absences from work in excess of the minimum amount required by ESST, as such absences are covered by this article. Abuse of sick leave or excessive absenteeism may result in disciplinary action. Sick leave taken immediately preceding termination of employment or retirement of an employee must be substantiated by written medical report. M. Sick leave may not be used for injury or illness resulting from employment other than with the City. However, if an employee is physically unable to perform the essential functions of their City job due to illness or injury resulting from other employment, the employee shall be eligible to be considered for an unpaid leave of absence if approved by the Fire Chief and the City Administrator for up to one (1) year from the date of injury suffered during other employment. N. Use of more than five (5) days of sick leave by shift or non-shift employees in a calendar year, except for illnesses and injuries with medical supervision/evidence, will require a referral to the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) for evaluation. This may be waived at 4 | Page the discretion of the Fire Chief or designated representative. M. Consistent with Minnesota Statute § 181.9447, Subd. 12, employees must be ready and available to respond to public emergencies or weather events, and therefore may not use ESST for the “closure of the employee’s place of business due to weather or other public emergency or an employee’s need to care for a family member whose school or place of care has been closed due to weather or other public emergency.” This exception is necessary for these positions because they have preassigned or foreseeable work duties requiring their response to the public emergency or weather event to ensure the city maintains minimum staffing requirements to provide essential public services. N. Paid Family Medical Leave - Effective January 1, 2026, Employees will pay the lessor of 50% of the State Plan premium for 50% of the premium for a plan selected by the Employer with the employee share payable through payroll deductions. Article 8 - Option to Purchase Insurance After Retirement Option to Purchase City-Sponsored Health Coverage, Dental Coverage, and/or Life Insurance after Retirement An employee who retires from regular full-time employment with the City of Rochester may continue to participate indefinitely in the City-sponsored health and/or dental insurance group that the employee participated in immediately prior to retirement. The retiree may receive dependent coverage only if s/he received dependent coverage immediately prior to retirement. A retiree who initially selects dependent coverage may later drop dependent coverage while retaining individual coverage, but the retiree may not drop individual coverage and retain dependent coverage. City-sponsored life insurance may be continued until the retiree’s seventy-fifth (75th) birthday. In order to retain City-sponsored health and/or dental coverage or life insurance, the retiree and their spouse, if applicable, must authorize the requisite deductions from a checking or savings account in the amount that is designated by the City and may be changed from time to time through written notification from the City. For the retiree, until age sixty-five (65), the amount of life insurance coverage which can be purchased is any amount, in one thousand dollar- ($1,000) increments, between a minimum of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) and a maximum of the amount of coverage available to the employee on the date of retirement from the City. Beginning on the retiree’s sixty-fifth (65th) birthday, the amount of life insurance coverage is limited by the underwriter to ten thousand dollars ($10,000). Any life-time maximum benefit designated in the City’s health coverage plan document continues to be applied after retirement. Effective the first of the month following the date this Agreement is signed by both parties, the above language regarding the option for retirees to purchase insurance shall be null and void in its entirety and replaced by the following: 5 | Page An employee who retires from regular full-time employment with the City of Rochester may continue to participate in the City-sponsored benefits the employee had immediately prior to retirement pursuant to state and federal law, the City's Organizational policies, as well as benefit plan documents. Spouses of retirees that are deceased will be allowed to continue coverage under state and federal law. This amendment shall automatically be incorporated into the successor to this Agreement without further negotiation. Article 9 –Insurance A. To be eligible for the benefits provided by this Article, employment must be scheduled to last for more than twelve (12) months and twenty (20) hours per week. Eligible employees working more than twenty (20) hours, but less than forty (40) hours per week will earn pro- rated insurance benefits. A. The City will provide term life insurance in an amount equal to the employee's annual salary rounded to the next highest thousand as outlined in the master policy on file in the City Clerk's Office. Effective the first of the month following the date this Agreement is signed by both parties, or earlier as determined in the sole discretion of the Employer for administrative convenience or necessity, the above language regarding City-provided term life insurance shall be null and void in its entirety and replaced by the following: B. The City will provide term life insurance in an amount equal to two (2) times the employee’s annual base salary rounded to the next highest thousand as outlined in the master policy on file in the City Clerk’s Office. This amendment shall automatically be incorporated into the successor to this Agreement without further negotiation. C. The City will provide group medical insurance to eligible employees and pay a portion of the total premium as follows: Medical Plan City’s Monthly Premium Basic Medical Plan Tier Effective Effective Effective 20232026 20242027 20252028 Employee Only 8887.00% 87.5000% 87.00% Employee + Spouse 8483.50% 84.0083.50% 83.50% Employee + Child(ren) 8483.50% 84.0083.50% 83.50% Family 8483.50% 84.0083.50% 83.50% High Deductible Plan Effective Effective Effective 20232026 20242027 20252028 Employee Only 8887.00% 87.5000% 87.00% Employee + Spouse 8483.50% 84.0083.50% 83.50% Employee + Child(ren) 8483.50% 84.0083.50% 83.50% Family 8483.50% 84.0083.50% 83.50% 6 | Page *Effective the first full pay check in January. The employee’s share of the premium will be paid through a payroll deduction. The employee contribution towards the cost of coverage(s) is divided among twenty-four (24) pay periods. No payroll deduction is taken on the third pay period in any month. D. The parties agree to an insurance reopener for 2024 and 2025 if there is a reduction in the aggregate value of benefits of the City’s Health Plan. E.D. Medical and dental coverage for eligible new employees will be effective the st first (1) of the month following their hire date. F.E. The City shall contribute the following amounts to a Health Savings Account (HSA) for all benefit-eligible employees selecting the High-Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) coverage: High Deductible Medical Plan Annual Contribution to HSA Employee Only $1,400.00 Employee + Spouse $2,800.00 Employee + Child(ren) $2,800.00 Family $2,800.00 *The annual contribution to the HSA account is paid out over the first two pay periods of each month (24 pay periods total). N. Continuation of insurance coverage will be available as provided by Federal and State law and other provisions of this Agreement. Article 13 - Wages Effective the first (1st) day of the first (1st) full pay periods in January, the following wage adjustments will be made (Appendix A): 2023 2026 – General Wage Adjustment on all Steps and Job Classifications: 2.004.00% general wage increase for all steps of the wage schedules for all represented job classifications. Market Adjustment: After the application of the general wage adjustment, the Step A/Start rate shall be increased as follows:  $1.25 per hour for Firefighter (Shift); and  $1.75 per hour for Firefighter (Non-Shift) and Fire Inspector. Market Adjustment: After the application of the base wage adjustment, a new step shall be added to the top of the wage scale for all job classes. The new step (Step F for Firefighter and Fire Inspector; Step C for all other job classes) shall be 4.00% above the prior top step. Employees who had been at the prior top step since January 1, 2022, would move to the new top step on the effective date. Employees who attained the prior top step after January 1, 2022, would move to the new top step on their anniversary date following 12 months at the prior top step. 7 | Page 2024 2027 – General Wage Adjustment on all Steps and Job Classifications: 3.00% general wage increase for all steps of the wage schedules for all represented job classifications. 2025 2028 – General Wage Adjustment on all Steps and Job Classifications: 3.002.00% general wage increase for all steps of the wage schedules for all represented job classifications. Market Adjustment: After the application of the 2028 general wage adjustment, a new step shall be added to the top of the wage scale for all job classes. The new step (Step G for Firefighter and Fire Inspector; Step D for all other classes) shall be 2.00% above the prior top step. Advancement to the new top step shall be as follows:  Firefighters and Fire Inspectors with six (6) or more years of service in their current st classification will move to the new top step (Step G) on the start of the first (1) full pay period of January 2028. All others will move to the new top step (Step G) on the start of the pay period closest to their anniversary date following twelve (12) months of service in their current classification at the prior top step (Step F).  All other classes with five (5) or more years of service in their current classification will st move to the new top step (Step F) on the start of the first (1) full pay period in January 2028. All others will move to the new top step (Step F) on the start of the pay period closest to their anniversary date following three (3) years of service in their current classification at the prior top step (Step C). If another bargaining unit negotiates a general across-the-board increase greater than 2.00% for 2028, the parties will reopen to meet and negotiate the 2028 general wage adjustment. Wages – Fire Inspector Effective as of the first day of the first full pay period in 2023, the Fire Inspector will be compensated at the same wage rates as the Firefighter (Non-Shift) job classification (including the market adjustment). Article 18 – Response Time* 18. RESPONSE TIME As a condition of employment, employees covered by this Agreement must establish and maintain their residence within a response time of no more than fifty (50) minutes from Station One within one (1) year of passing probation. *Upon full ratification of the successor agreement, the City agrees to delete the response time SOG and recommend the Fire Civil Service Commission repeal the response time requirement from Fire Civil Service Commission Rule and Regulations, Section 5. Article 19 – Working out of Classification D. When a Captain works as a Battalion Chief, or a Fire Inspector assumes the Assistant Fire Marshal duties, or an Assistant Fire Marshal assumes the Fire Marshal duties of the 8 | Page Deputy Chief/Fire Administration, or the Captain of Emergency Management assumes the duties of the Assistant Chief of Emergency Management, they shall be paid an additional ten percent (10%) of the Captain's or the Assistant Fire Marshal’s current hourly rate of pay. E. Personnel required to work on a special assignment, as authorized by the Fire Chief and covered by this Agreement shall receive a three to five percent (3-5%) wage adjustment as approved by the Fire Chief. A special assignment is a project of defined or limited duration that the Fire Chief determines is needed to respond to a mandated procedural or project deadline. Article 31 – Prior Service Credit This provision is intended to encourage experienced firefighters from other agencies to seek employment with the Rochester Fire Department. At the discretion of the Chief, based on an applicant’s prior experience, an applicant with prior experience as a full-time professional firefighter may be offered to start at up to Step 3 C of the Firefighter wage schedule. An employee who is started at a step higher than Step 1 A shall be entitled to annual step advancement in the same manner as other employees. During the six (6) month period following the implementation of this Agreement, an employee who was hired on or after January 1, 2023, and who had prior service with another fire department as a full-time professional firefighter, may apply to the Chief to request consideration for step advancement based on their prior service. The decision whether to grant prior service credit and step advancement to an existing employee is at the sole discretion of the Chief and is not grievable. For all other purposes, an employee given prior service credit under this section shall be treated as a new hire. Regardless of where the employee with prior service credit is placed on the salary schedule, the employee shall have no enhanced right with regard to: seniority; eligibility for vacation selection or promotion; or any other rights or benefits based on service time with the Rochester Fire Department. Article 31 32 – Duration of Agreement The Agreement shall be effective January 1, 2023 2026 and shall remain in effect through December 31, 20252028. This Agreement shall be automatically renewed from year-to-year thereafter, unless either party wishes to reopen negotiations. Either party may reopen negotiations by st notifying the other party in writing of their intention by May first (1) of the current contract year. 9 | Page 2026 - 4% ABCDEF ClassificationStart1 Year2 Years3 Years4 Years5 Years Firefighter (Shift)25.96126.99628.35429.91432.93634.252 Firefighter (Non-Shift) & Fire Inspector36.34537.79439.69641.8846.1147.953 Motor Operator (Shift)34.57636.22337.672 Motor Operator (Non-Shift)48.40650.71252.741 AFM (Non-Shift) 51.99854.26256.431 Captain (Shift)39.76341.16442.811 Captain (Non-Shift)55.66857.6359.935 2027 - 3% ABCDEF ClassificationStart1 Year2 Years3 Years4 Years5 Years Appendix A Firefighter (Shift)26.7427.80629.20530.81133.92435.28 Firefighter (Non-Shift) & Fire Inspector37.43638.92840.88743.13547.49449.392 Motor Operator (Shift)35.61337.3138.802 Motor Operator (Non-Shift)49.85852.23454.323 AFM (Non-Shift) 53.55855.8958.124 WAGES Captain (Shift)40.95642.39944.095 Captain (Non-Shift)57.33859.35961.733 Effective the First Full Pay Period in January of Each Year 2028 - 2% ABCDEFG ClassificationStart1 Year2 Years3 Years4 Years5 Years6 Years Firefighter (Shift)27.27528.36229.78931.42734.60235.98636.706 Firefighter (Non-Shift) & Fire Inspector38.18539.70741.70543.99848.44350.3851.388 Motor Operator (Shift)36.32538.05639.57840.37 Motor Operator (Non-Shift)50.85553.27855.40956.517 AFM (Non-Shift) 54.62957.00859.28660.472 Captain (Shift)41.77543.24744.97745.877 Captain (Non-Shift)58.48560.54662.96864.227 Shift = 2,912 hours Non-Shift = 2080 hours 10 | Page LETTER OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN THE UNION OF ROCHESTER AND THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF FIRE FIGHTERS, LOCAL 520 PARAMEDIC SPECIALTY PAY This Memorandum of Understanding is between the City of Rochester (hereafter “City”) and the International Association of Fire Fighters, Local 520 (hereafter “Union”) who are parties to a Collective Bargaining Agreement (hereafter “CBA”) in effect from January 1, 2023 2026 through December 31, 20252028. WHEREAS, the CITY and Union agree this MOU is specifically limited to the purpose of providing paramedic services to protect employees and citizens within a restricted access area where other Advanced Life Support (hereafter ALS) providers will not or cannot operate. WHEREAS, the City will not assign personnel to perform routine day-to-day ALS task assignments unrelated to specialty group tasks or at non-specialty team incidents where other ALS services are available. WHEREAS, employees who are registered paramedics may function as an ALS provider when assigned by the Fire Chief to serve a medical role during a specialty-group medical training event. THEREFORE, the City and Union agree as follows: 1. Employees who are registered paramedics and assigned by the Fire Chief to perform ALS tasks when no other ALS service provider will perform said tasks, will be eligible for specialty pay in the amount of $2.002.50 per hour for all hours worked. Effective the first full pay period of 2024, the amount shall increase to $2.50. Except as provided in paragraph number 2, below, such tasks shall include group training for which an employee is assigned specifically to provide or train to provide ALS services. 2. Employee time in training to meet the EMT-Basic or EMT-Paramedic recertification requirements are not eligible for specialty pay. 3. This MOU represents the complete and total agreement between the Employer and the Union and will continue in effect for the duration of this contract, unless terminated by one party by giving a minimum of thirty days advanced written notice to the other party. City of Rochester IAFF, Local 520 _____________________________ _______________________________ City Administrator IAFF President _____________________________ ________________________________ Director Human Resources Date _____________________________ Date 11 | Page MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT CITY OF ROCHESTER AND THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF FIREFIGHTERS, LOCAL 520 48/96 SHIFT PILOT PROGRAM This Memorandum of Agreement (“MOA”) is entered into between the City of Rochester (hereafter “City”) and the International Association of Firefighters, Local 520 (hereafter “Union”). WHEREAS, the City and the Union are presently parties to a Labor Agreement in effect January 1, 2023 through December 31, 2025, covering employees in the bargaining unit (the “Labor Agreement”); and WHEREAS, the parties are in the process of negotiation the successor to the Labor Agreement; and WHEREAS, one of the topics in bargaining has been the possible modification of the shift schedule presently set out in Section 4.B. of the Labor Agreement; and WHEREAS, the parties jointly conducted a survey of sworn personnel in the Fire Department to determine their interest in modifying the shift schedule; and WHEREAS, the overwhelming consensus of the sworn personnel was to conduct a pilot program to use what is commonly known as the “48/96 Schedule” on a trial basis; and WHEREAS, the parties desire to implement this pilot program as described herein independent of their on-going negotiations for or resolution of the successor to the Labor Agreement; and NOW THEREFORE, the parties agree as follows: 1. While this pilot MOA is in effect, the language of Section 4.B. of the Labor Agreement is temporarily amended as provided in the attached Appendix A. 2. This pilot MOA shall, after execution by the parties and unless extended by written agreement of the parties on or before December 31, 2027, be effective to govern the work schedules for employees during the period beginning at 0800 hours on April 21, 2026 and ending at 2359 hours on March 31, 2027 2028. This pilot MOA may be extended at the Chief’s discretion with 60 days notice to the Union. 3. The Chief will monitor financial and operational impacts of the pilot MOA and may terminate the pilot MOA early at the Chief’s discretion with 60 days notice to the Union. 12 | Page 3.4. Unless otherwise provided by written agreement of the parties, the language of Section 4.B. of the Labor Agreement shall automatically and without further negotiation revert to the language that existed prior to the effective date of this pilot MOA upon the expiration or termination of this pilot MOA. 4.5. This pilot MOA represents the complete and total agreement of the parties regarding the pilot program described herein. 5.6. The following execution indicates an agreement between the parties to the specific terms as set forth in this pilot MOA. The parties have caused this pilot Memorandum of Agreement to be executed by their duly authorized representatives on the dates indicated below. CITY OF ROCHESTER UNION ____ Alison Zelms, City Administrator IAFF President ____ Aaron Parrish, HR Director Date Date 13 | Page