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Home My WebLink About1997-09-16; City Council; 14351; APPROVE PARAMEDIC SPECIALTY PAY FOR THREE FIRE CAPTAIN POSITIONS FOR UP TO THREE YEARSAB # /y% TITLE: APPROVE PARAMEDIC SPECIALTY PAY FOR MTG. 9/16/97 THREE FIRE CAPTAIN POSITIONS FOR UP TO DEPT. FIR THREE YEARS DEPT CITY CITY & z 0 5 4 6 z 3 0 0 - OF CARLSBAD - AGEWA BILL RECOMMENDED ACTION: approving That City Council adopt RESOLUTION NO. 4 3- 404 the payment of specialty pay for fire captains who are licensed paramedics a function as paramedics at the direction of the fire chief. ITEM DESCRIPTION: The fire department has dramatically altered its paramedic delivery system over the past year. Wha originally a system based on paramedic ambulances has evolved to a system based upon six para engines and two paramedic ambulances. This evolution was accomplished, in part, by shifting our place medics on each engine without increasing our authorized staffing. remaining non-Daramedic firefighters from an engine to an ambulance. It was this shill which enab It is desirable to be able to rotate personnel between the ambulance and engine to maintain their fighting skills. Swapping a non-paramedic firefighter from the ambulance with a paramedic firefigh the engine would result in losing the paramedic-level capability of that engine. To avoid this servi reduction, we have found it expedient to re-license several of our captains who were formerly par Only three captains, one per shift, will be working at this level and receiving specialty pay compen any given time. The captain paramedic will allow the rotation of non-paramedic firefighters from ambulance duty t company duty for skill-maintenance purposes. It will also ease day-to-day staffing problems relate training and vacancies created by sick leave, vacations etc. The assigned personnel will serve in i capacity as a functioning paramedic and a supervisor. Their role as a supervisor will encompass tt responsibilities of an engine company captain as well as those associated with EMS-related issue Quality ImprovemenffAssurance. They will also act as a conduitkontact for issues between line I: and staff on each shift. In addition, this will allow an opportunity for the five remaining firefighters, next three years, to attend paramedic school and obtain their paramedic license. Assignment as a captain paramedic will be on a rotating basis and is currently scheduled to be a s assignment. We view this as a three year pilot program. Prior to the ending date of June 30, 2000 evaluate the effectiveness of the program and recommend its continuance, revision or conclusio program change was approved by the leadership team in January 1997 as part of a fire departmei reorganization. FISCAL IMPACT: Personnel functioning as captain paramedics will be compensated by specialty pay equivalent tc difference between step 35E (Firefighter) and step 41 E (Paramedic Firefighter), currently $259 This amount totals approximately $24,200 annually and has been provided for in the fiscal 97/9 Approximately 80% of the funding for this program change was accomplished through savings a with a staff reorganization. EXHl BITS: 1. Resolution No. 9?-'@?approving side letter 2. Side Letter I 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 e W RESOLUTION NO. 97-606 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA, APPROVING SIDE LEITER DATED SEPTEMBER 8,1997, REGARDING FIRE CAPTAINS WH ASSIGNED AS FIRE CAPTAINPARAMEDIC DURING THE FIRE DEPARTMENTS TEMPORi EXPERIMENTAL. AND HIGHER SERVICE-LEVEL EMS DELIVERY SYSTEM PILOT PROGF WHEREAS, representatives of management and the Carlsbad Firefighters' Association, Inc conducted negotiations pursuant to the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act regarding the impacts upon the and conditions of employment of the fire department's decision to pursue a temporary, experiemc higher service-level EMS delivery system pilot program; and WHERAS, said representatives reached aoreement as to the impacts of the fire departmen' decision upon the terms and condittions of employment and have committed that agreement to w side letter dated September 8, 1997; and WHEREAS, funds for the specialty pay described in the side letter dated September 8, 19! available and have been included in the fire department operating budget for fiscal year 1997/98 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the Clty of Carisbad, as follo' 1. That the above recitations are true and correct. 2. That the side letter dated September 8, 1997, set forth in Exhbit A, attached hereto an part hereof, is adopted. PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED at a regular meeting of the Carlsbad City Council t 16th dayof SEPTEMBER , 1997, by the following vote, to wit: AYES: Council Members Lewis, Finnila, Nygaard, Kulchin, Hall NOES: None ABSENT: None ATTEST: - (SEAL) ALETHA L. RAUT~~KRANZ, clty Clerk 1 tAHli3l I RESOL Nt e w SIDE LETTER REGARDING CONDITIONS OF ASSIGNMENT TO FIRE CAPTAINPARAMEDIC In order to help assess the costs of providing a higher level of paramedic services, the Fire Department (“Department”) has decided to pursue a temporary and experimental “pilot program” that is intended to improve the Emergency Medical Service (“EMS”) delivery system. This side letter describes the components of this temporary and experimental pilot program as it relates to Fire Captains. Pursuant to Article 24(E) of the Memorandum of Understanding between the City of Carlsbad (“City”) and the Carlsbad Firefighters’ Association, Inc. (“CFA, Inc.”), effective January 1, 1997 through December 1998, the parties have met and conferred regarding the impacts of the Department’s decision to pursue the temporary and experimental pilot program and have agreed to the following: 1. In the event that the Department makes the fundamental management. decision to discontinue the temporary and experimental pilot program, all of the components of the program that are described in this Side Letter will be automatically discontinued without the need to meet and confer. 2. Fire Captain/Paramedic is an assignment, and is not a position or job classification. The Department will assign Fire Captains as Fire CaptainlParamedic on a temporary basis that will generally last a period of six months. The duration of the assignment, however, may be shortened or extended as the Fire Chief deems appropriate. No Fir CaptahRaramedic will have any property rights to retain the assignment for any particular period of time. 3. No more than three Fire Captains wilI be assigned as Fire Captaiflaramedic any time. 4. The City will provide specialty pay for Fire Captains assigned as Fire CaptainParamedic in the amount of $2.22 per hour, a sum that is equal to the difference between salary steps 35E and 41E as of January 23,1997. 5. A Fire Captain will be entitled to paramedic specialty pay only when performing the duties of the Fire Captaiflaramedic assignment. Attached hereto is a copy of the duties of the Fire CapWaramedic assignment. 6. Paramedic specialty pay will be included in the regular rate of pay, as required by F Labor Standards Act (“FLSA.”) and regulations, in order to compute FLSA overtimc compensation. 7. When the assigned Fire Captaiflaramedic is absent, the assignment will be filled i the same manner as occurs when a Fire Captain is absent. L v 0 8. To be eligible for the assignment, a Fire Captain must have the necessary skills, proper certificatiodlicense, and accreditation. The City will provide in-house continuing education (CE), permit on-duty attendance at external CE classes when possible, and when appropriate, send the Fire Captan to CE classes off-duty. 9. Upon proof of successful re-certification /re-licensing, the City will reimburse the Fire Captain for the cost of State and County certificatiodlicense fees. 10. EMS-related supervisory and management duties appropriate to the position of Fire Captain may be assigned during the period that the Fire Captain is working in the Fire Captaiflaramedic assignment. Attachment: Fire Captaiflaramedic Assignment Description IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto understand and agree to the above terms and conditions and have caused their duly authorized representatives to execute this side letter on 5eptprrL g , 1997. CITY OF CARLSBAD Approved as to Form: CL-QIJ2.k 7p/s *. Ronald Ball, City Attorney CARLSBAD FIREFIGHTERS ASSOCIATION, INC. Bill Anderson, President Approved as to Form: Fern M. Steiner, Tosdall, Levine, Smith & Steiner 2