High stakes as McAllen, firefighters union negotiate new contract

McALLEN — City negotiators and the firefighters union will attempt to hammer out a new contract this summer, which could help the dysfunctional Fire Department return to normalcy — or plunge McAllen into a legal quandary.

A new collective bargaining agreement offers a fresh start between the fire chief, a non-union city administrator, and 142 union members, including deputy chiefs and captains — the department’s senior management. Numerous chiefs have left McAllen since 2003. One lasted only five weeks.

Two scathing investigations ordered by the city’s Civil Service Commission determined the union routinely used the contract to undermine the chief’s authority and created a parallel chain of command. Union officials have disputed those findings.

Attorney James Selman, who conducted both investigations, said the department’s problems could fester unless the contract changes.

“It won’t matter who the chief is — it will have a dramatically negative impact on his ability to control his department,” said Selman, who lives in Port Isabel. “Any of the changes he wants to put forward can effectively be vetoed by the union executive committee.”

The contract between McAllen and Local 2602 dictates everything from starting salaries to which chores the firefighters must perform at station houses. Though the agreement expires Oct. 1, firefighters will continue operating under the old contract while negotiations continue. Any deadlock could send both sides to court, where a judge would be asked to interpret conflicting amendments to the city charter.

Both measures passed last November. One prohibits binding arbitration in labor disputes; the other requires it. Though city officials feel the first amendment will prevail, a judge will ultimately decide.

The Players

Longtime union president Amado Cano, also a deputy chief, will represent the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 2602. Only 11 of the department’s eligible firefighters haven’t joined the union.

Aside from a stint as interim chief, Cano has been a member of the union’s executive committee since the union began negotiating contracts. He will be off work for about two months for surgery.

Cano has been a controversial figure in the department.

A 2006 report by the Civil Service Commission concluded Cano conspired with former Chief Anthony Rogers to target a city commissioner’s properties for code enforcement after the commissioner shot down their proposed budget. Cano flatly denied allegations and, through an attorney, issued a rebuttal.

Last year, another report cast Cano in an unflattering light. Written by the same attorney, James Selman, the report recounted a phone call between Cano and current Chief Rogelio Rubio.

“You can’t do anything; I am the (expletive) Union President,” the report quotes Cano as telling Rubio. Cano told The Monitor he is preparing a written rebuttal of the report, which he described as full of unfounded allegations and sparse on facts.

That report is the only independent account of the turmoil at the Fire Department. It comes with a nearly 600-page appendix documenting its conclusions and was approved by the Civil Service Commission.

Cano will work with attorney Ricardo Navarro, who represents the city of McAllen.

A public-sector lawyer, Navarro has negotiated contracts with firefighters unions in Brownsville, Weslaco and Pharr. This is the first year McAllen has hired an outside attorney to lead negotiations. Navarro predicted the poor economy would make money a key point of contention and could also make the city hesitant about committing to a lengthy contract.

Before the current three-year contract, firefighters had negotiated a two-year deal.

Recommendations Cast Aside

The 2009 report offered 11 recommendations to strengthen the department, many of which weaken the union. Among them, the report suggests the city no longer pay the union president for time spent filing grievances and recommends prohibiting firefighters from moonlighting.

It also recommends tightening the contract’s wording to help the city avoid excessive formal complaints, which the report describes as “insubordination disguised as a legitimate grievance.”

Other recommendations for the city, which don’t apply to the current contract negotiations, include petitioning the state legislature to exclude senior officers from the union and limiting union political activity in municipal elections.

Cano said he will release his rebuttal to the report next month.

Navarro said he has read the recommendations but isn’t tied to them.

“I read it at one time, and, like I said, I don’t have any specific marching orders to say, ‘Implement the recommendations,’” Navarro said. “Basically they said, ‘Negotiate a contract everyone can live with’” while taking into account the economy and other factors.

“I don’t anticipate coming to any negotiating session with the last page of the Selman report and having a checklist saying, ‘Now we did this,’” Navarro said.

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Dave Hendricks covers McAllen and general assignments for The Monitor. He can be reached at (956) 683-4452.