COVINGTON, Ky. — “Do we have the minimum staffing that we need to make sure that the firefighters are safe and our citizens are safe,” asked Covington City Commissioner Shannon Smith at the commission caucus Tuesday night. “Is the path that we’re on the correct one, yes or no?”
“No,” replied Covington Fire Chief Mark Pierce at the lectern before the commission.
Thus began a round of questioning from the commissioners about the staffing levels of the city fire department.
In the weeks leading up to Tuesday’s meeting, City Manager Ken Smith, in conjunction with the fire chief, had reduced the minimum number of firefighters on duty from its previous number of 28 to 26. Smith stated at last week’s meeting that the changes were an effort to rein in runaway overtime hours among firefighters in the face of the deficit in the city’s general fund, which is paid for with tax dollars and which contains Covington’s fire budget. Ken Smith described the overtime numbers as “not sustainable.”
“Last year, fiscal ’23, the fire department paid $1.3 million in unscheduled overtime,” Ken Smith said at last week’s meeting. “That’s on top of 2.3 million in scheduled overtime, and it exceeded the budget by more than $900,000.”
The policy change prompted a reaction from Professional Firefighters Local 38, Covington’s fire union, which argued that the reduction in minimum staffing requirements endangered people’s safety. The changes had, they said, led to the sidelining of an ambulance and staffing levels that were inadequate for safely running trucks. Local 38 sent out messages on social media, encouraging people to advocate on the firefighters’ behalf, and members showed up to both last week’s and Tuesday’s meetings with signs expressing their grievances.
Some commissioners asked Pierce why he and city staff had recommended the change.
Pierce said established practices within the fire department recommended 28 firefighters on duty at a time, but the city had managed with only 26 in the past. After learning about the decline in tax revenue earlier this month, Pierce said, this seemed like the most reasonable way to control costs.
“I had a conversation with the city manager the Friday after that came out to discuss what that number would be,” Pierce said. “And in that discussion, we were talking pros and cons… Historically in the past when ambulance three was taken away from us, we did drop down to 26 and we did make it work and so 26 was the number that we agreed to.”
Pierce added that those staffing levels were “not optimal,” but manageable under the current circumstances. The commissioners continued their questioning.
“What is the minimum staffing that we need to protect these guys and these gals in the city?” asked Shannon Smith again. “Is it 26? Is it 28? Which is it? We need a very clear answer.”
Pierce reiterated his response that 26 was workable given the city’s financial situation, even if it was in contrast to established standards.
But Shannon Smith wanted a more direct answer.
“We want to make sure everyone’s safe,” Shannon Smith said. “Is it 26, or is it 28?”
“28,” Pierce said.
The Local 38 supporters applauded at this response.
But the commissioners weren’t finished.
“Why did you wait so long to change your mind and tell us a new number after we asked you for your advice, and upon getting pressure, that you are now telling us a different number?” asked Commissioner Tim Downing.
Pierce said that given the constraints of the union contract, there were certain things the department couldn’t cut back on, such as sick time, bereavement time and other paid time off.
“We can’t cut those things back,” Pierce said. “So, in order to make the numbers work, 26 is the number we came up with.”
“That’s a disconcerting answer,” Downing said.
Downing continued, saying that Pierce’s response “essentially means that you’re going to tell us one thing in private and you’re going to tell us another thing in public, and that challenges the trust that we have of the relationship.”
Mayor Pro Temp Ron Washington–Mayor Joe Meyer did not attend the meeting–affirmed this point, saying that Pierce never mentioned the issue of safety in his private conversations with Washington.
“At no point did you say,…’Ron it’s unsafe,'” Washington said. “… It’s very disappointing that you did not tell us that this was an unsafe environment.”
Commission Steve Hayden then asked what it would take to bring the department up to the necessary staff levels to avoid cutting the number of firefighters on duty while also curtailing the overtime expenses. Pierce responded by saying that the force currently allows for 122 firefighters, but the city only had 117 at the time of the meeting. He said six recruits were currently going through the necessary onboarding and background checks. He hoped to have five new firefighters on the payroll by April.
Discussion continued in the latter parts of the meeting, and Shannon Smith said that the commission had believed the city would be safe with reduced numbers based on the available information.
“It was our impression that we were safe: We were riding safe, all of you were safe, our citizens were safe,” Shannon Smith said, “and it wasn’t until we had some folks reach us a lot… that we questioned further.”
Shannon Smith concluded by saying she was no longer comfortable allowing only 26 firefighters at a time on duty. At the end of the meeting, she made a motion to restore the staffing minimum back to 28, which Downing seconded and the commission unanimously passed.
“Common sense prevailed,” said Local 38 President and Firefighter Ben Wasson after the meeting. “I truly think that a very harsh decision, a very risky decision, was made without all of the information. At least, at this point, we’re going to continue the dialogue and figure out what the best operating practices are.”
The next meeting of the Covington City Commission will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 27 at 6 p.m. at Covington City Hall on Pike Street.
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