By Martin B. Cassidy
Staff Writer
November 28, 2007
The town's fire inspectors want to be made deputy fire marshals,
saying a higher salary and rank is warranted because of the
demands of the job, union officials said.
The Greenwich Firefighters Association Local 1042, the union
representing career firefighters, is backing the proposal and
will seek the change in contract negotiations next year,
according to Fire Lt. John Novak.
Novak said an increased salary was justified because the
inspectors perform many of the same duties as the better
compensated deputy marshal.
"We're just trying to come up with changes that would make
the job more appealing," Novak said. "They do a lot of
the same work."
At a hearing last week about Fire Marshal Joseph Benoit's job
performance, Acting Fire Marshal James McDonald testified he
believed fire inspectors should be made deputy fire marshals with
a higher salary.
"We're trying to make that happen," McDonald said.
First Selectman Jim Lash, who also is a fire commissioner, said
that he believed evaluating the structure of the Fire Marshal's
Office and whether more personnel were needed to do more
inspections should precede the promotions.
"We need to know what the overall work of the unit is and
what is getting done and how many people we need to do the
work," Lash said. "We need to know what the
organization has to look like to do the work mandated for that
organization and changing job titles will not accomplish
that."
At the hearing, McDonald was called to testify for the town about
Benoit in a proceeding over whether Benoit should be fired for
poor job performance.
McDonald declined to comment, saying the promotion is a contract
issue which must be negotiated.
The Fire Marshal's Office's five-member staff of a marshal,
deputy fire marshal, and three inspectors conducts inspections of
buildings for fire code violations, reviews building plans for
fire code compliance, and investigates the cause and origin of
fires.
In the 2007-2008 fiscal year, deputy fire marshals make between
$72,184 to $81,837, while lower-ranking inspectors make between
$59,187 and $75,850, depending on their length of service and
other certifications, according to the fire department's
collective bargaining agreement, which expires in 2009.
Fire Chief Peter Siecienski said he had considered the proposal
since joining the department last fall and discussed it with
union and other firefighters, but declined to comment about the
proposed change because of union negotiations.
"It's hard to comment on a subject of negotiations that
impact wages, hours, and working conditions at this point,"
Siecienski said.
Daniel Warzoha, a former Greenwich fire chief, said in 2000 he
restored the position of deputy fire marshal to provide more
leadership in the Fire Marshal's Office and create a path of
advancement for inspectors.
"I felt there should definitely be a middle step to get fire
inspectors ready to move up to a position with supervisory
capacity and authority," Warzoha said. "It was meant to
provide a clear ladder of succession."
Copyright © 2007, Southern Connecticut Newspapers, Inc.