Columbus firefighters get raise in new contract

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- Columbus City Council went into an executive session for around two hours Monday to discuss a new contract involving pay for Columbus firefighters.

It's going to go into effect as of now; however, council did not vote on it. 

The State Employment Relations Board said that either party has to reject the contract within seven days. If they don't, not taking action effectively affirms it as well.

A big part of the contract is a 17.5% raise over the next three years. The union said the negotiations over this contract went into uncharted territory; they had to go to a third party for a list of issues.

However, the union says it is happy with the result.

"We're one of the busiest fire EMS agencies in the country," President of Columbus Firefighters Union Steve Stein said. "The growth of this city we're seeing everywhere, that growth is also turning in our call volume as well, which means the demands on our firefighters, EMTs and paramedics. We're going to need to continue to innovate our responses and have an agile workforce that doesn't go home ever."

Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther sent out the following statement on the contract:

“Although this is not the outcome my administration had hoped to achieve, negotiations between the City of Columbus and the International Association of Fire Fighters, Local 67, have solidified that Columbus firefighters are the best paid in the state of Ohio. The Fact Finder’s recommendation will cost $103 million to implement over the next three years. Now we must continue to assess the full economic impact of this agreement.”