World-Herald editorial: Don't rush on fire deal

In looking at the hurry to sign this contract, some Omahans might ask: "Where's the fire?"

Mayor Jim Suttle's administration and the Omaha firefighters union seem awfully eager to sign a new contract now, after negotiations dating back to 2007. The skepticism of some City Council members ahead of Tuesday's scheduled vote is understandable.

The tentative deal was reached the day before state lawmakers passed a bill revamping the state labor court, and the contract comes before the council only weeks before that overhaul takes effect for cities.

Certainly, the city and the union each got some and gave some. The pact includes a wage freeze for 2010 and half of 2011, while firefighters could get pay hikes the last half of this year and in 2012 and 2013. The contract also offers a start on fixing long-term pension fund problems.

At least two sticking points have emerged with council members: health insurance premiums for department retirees and the length of the contract.

On health insurance, the proposed contract calls for retirees to pay the same rate for their insurance as when they were employed. The police contract, by contrast, gives the city more flexibility on such premiums. Council member Chris Jerram is proposing to require future fire retirees to pay the same premiums as do active employees, while Franklin Thompson wants firefighters to transition to the city's civilian health care plan.

The proposed contract would run through 2013. Councilwoman Jean Stothert indicated she wanted it to expire at the end of this year, and Jerram proposed August 2012. That would give the city a chance to negotiate a new contract next year under the law that revised the state labor court, the Commission of Industrial Relations.

Some observers suggest that new rules under which the CIR will operate could give the city a stronger hand in salary negotiations. Under the revamp, the labor court will take health insurance and pensions into account as it compares compensation in Omaha with similar communities. Before, it considered only actual salaries. City officials say that even if the CIR lowered 2012 wages, the city would forgo about $4 million in 2010-11 concessions and wouldn't know what the CIR might order in back pay and pension obligations.

A World-Herald analysis by reporter Matt Wynn found that the proposed contract would reduce pension benefits through higher retirement ages and an end to pension spiking. That's a start on a long-term remedy for the city's financially ailing police and fire pension fund. City officials note that such a fix wouldn't be part of a CIR ruling because the labor court lacks authority to change pension provisions or health care plans directly. Critics have argued that the pension changes don't go far enough.

Rushing to finish this deal doesn't feel right to many Omahans. The council members voicing concerns are right to ask hard questions before the final vote.