Swampscott Fire Union, Town In Dispute Over Staffing

SWAMPSCOTT, MA – Swampscott police and educators unions are voicing support for the Fire Fighters Union Local 1459 in the latest skirmish between first responders and the town.

The latest conflict is based on the union's complaint filed to the state Department of Labor Relations that this winter the fire department was not filling the minimum number of firefighters per shift per the collective bargaining agreement amid a coronavirus surge in the region.

Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald said at last week's Select Board meeting shifts were lowered from a minimum of eight firefighters to seven during a 14-week period of December through February where "almost half of the fire department was out sick" and "we literally could not fill some of these shifts due to the number of staff who were not able to respond."

Fitzgerald praised Fire Chief Graham Archer's "extraordinary leadership and discretion" in managing the budget through the period where he said the town still met a "baseline" for community safety.

The union is arguing the town and department had resources available to hire an additional firefighter or defer firefighter academy training to allow for the requistie paid shifts to be filled.

Fitzgerald said the town maintained what he called "a level that would still provide a baseline for safety and, unfortunately, we're now facing a grievance that is looking for additional, significant compensation during a year where we've paid a record amount of overtime for the fire department."

He said the town spent $247,000 in overtime during the 14-week period when the average of past years was $188,000.

"I just think it's important for the board and community to know these are the financial costs that really are challenging for a town like Swampscott," Fitzgerald said.

Swampscott Police Union Local 417 issued a statement Saturday backing the firefighters union in the dispute where they claim "the character of our firefighters was called into question."

"We stand alongside our firefighters and stand proudly with those who choose to come into work every day and serve their community with professionalism while putting the health and welfare of others before their own, during a national pandemic," Local 417 said in the statement posted on its Facebook page. "The Swampscott Fire Department holds the highest of standards while conducting their duties day in and day out. The fire department continuously runs in the direction of danger in an attempt to protect and save the lives of others.

"We want the town of Swampscott and community to know that we, the Swampscott Police Union and its members, stand with Swampscott Fire with honor. We are stronger together and remain dedicated to serving the community with respect, integrity and professionalism."

The Swampscott Educators Union issued a statement backing the firefighters as well.

"The Swampscott Education Association is deeply disappointed by recent comments made in regards to the Swampscott Fire Department," that union posted Sunday morning. "We stand with these brave individuals who sacrifice each day in ways we can't even fathom. We thank you for all you have done and continue to do."

This is the latest in a string of public clashes between the town and public safety unions amid the pandemic.

In January, Union Local 1459 president Jim Snow issued an open letter to the community objecting to public questions about whether some firefighters who opted against immediately accepting the Moderna coronavirus vaccine when it was first available to them were putting the public in danger if unvaccinated firefighters entered their houses.

The police union has also been at odds with the town through an external investigation of its handling of a Dec. 13 protest arrest of a Black man accused of striking an older woman where the external investigation later judged that while police had probable cause in making the arrest the subsequent investigation into the events surrounding the arrest was flawed.

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(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)

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