FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Joint Statement on Shift Differential Mediation Agreement with Firefighters

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - The City of Morgantown and certain individual firefighters, who are members of the International Association of Firefighters Local 313, jointly announced, on May 7, 2021, that they mutually resolved the firefighters’ claim that they were entitled to shift differential pay under the Personnel Rules of the City of Morgantown, pending approval of the terms by city council.

The City of Morgantown recently has undertaken efforts to clarify and enforce existing personnel policies for all employees, to follow-through on completing a city-wide employee compensation study, and to reorganize city operations to achieve greater effectiveness in delivering services to its constituents and taxpayers. In the course of completing the employee compensation study, issues and inconsistencies with firefighter shift differential pay under the Personnel Rules were brought to city administration’s attention.

The firefighters have received shift differential pay under the Personnel Rules for many years. The city has paid, and, therefore, the firefighters have come to expect, shift differential as part of the firefighters’ historical pay package. To the mutual satisfaction of the firefighters and the city, the parties have amicably agreed that, while the firefighters will not be entitled to shift differential pay under the Personnel Rules, as written, going forward, they will receive a proportional increase in their base rate pay, such that there should be no change in the firefighters’ pay received and with minimal or no change in cost to the city. In addition, going forward, the firefighters will only receive shift differential pay when they are called out for any unscheduled duty starting during the afternoon or evening shift as provided by the shift differential rules in place and applicable to all city employees under the city’s then-existing Personnel Rules.

City administration will recommend this mediated resolution for approval by city council at its next meeting, set for May 18, 2021.

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