Redwood City firefighters reach tentative agreement

The union and the city were previously at impasse, with firefighters working out of contract for more than two months. The major point of contention was the issue of compensatory time, which is banked time off in lieu of getting paid overtime pay, a common benefit for public service workers who often have to be called in to work on off days. 

In the proposed contract, employees’ compensatory time off allowance will be dependent on the amount of standalone paramedics are staffed. 

Once the city employs 27 paramedics, employees will not be able to earn more than 168 hours of compensatory time off in a calendar year, the staff report read. However, if staffing falls to 23 or fewer, that cap becomes soft, and employees cannot exceed 168 at any given time. Currently, employees cannot exceed 72 hours at any given time.

The root concern has been staffing shortages, Michael Elhihi, president of the Redwood City Firefighters Association, said previously. As of August, the city budgeted for 24 paramedics and 24 EMTs, but two paramedics have been on long-term disability and another recently left.

To mitigate this, the city is establishing a paramedic training program incentive, according to the staff report. Firefighters can participate in a paramedic training program, with the intent of promotion and staying on staff, at the city’s expense. 

As a condition of participation in the loan-forgiveness program, the employee must work as a paramedic within Redwood City for two years. 

“At the end of the two years of service as a Redwood City assigned paramedic, the city loan for the cost of the Paramedic Training Program will be forgiven,” the staff report read. 

Redwood City will also pay an incentive of $20,000 for employees accepted in the training program in four intervals, from when they are accepted to when they receive their paramedic licensing. 

The salary and benefit changes proposed in this contract will cost the city approximately $961,850, which is $531,850 more than they previously allotted in the fiscal year 2024-25 budget.

In other business, the Redwood City Council will also have a study session on tobacco regulations in the city, including monitoring retailers and considering regulating smoking in the public right of way. The study will ultimately guide council consideration in a future meeting as to whether the city would like to adopt the county’s enforcement policy — and avoid financial administrative burdens of regulating and enforcement on retailers — or to adopt its own policy to add more flexibility in the types of businesses in the city.