A proposed three-year contract with Auburn’s firefighters failed Thursday after months of negotiations gave way to a lengthy and at times heated City Council debate over staffing guarantees, wage increases, health insurance and the city’s ability to absorb additional costs.
Council rejected the agreement with Auburn Professional Firefighters Local 1446 on a 3-2 vote. Craig Diego, Rhoda Overstreet-Wilson and Mayor Jimmy Giannettino voted against it, while Terry Cuddy and Christina Calarco supported it.
The proposed contract would have run retroactively from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2029. It called for 3% wage increases in each contract year, while gradually increasing the employee share of health insurance premiums from 16.25% this year to 18.75% by July 2028.
One of the city’s primary concessions from the union involved staffing.
City Manager Jenny Haines said the agreement would reduce the contractual staffing level from 71 to 65 and lower minimum staffing per shift from 14 to 12. The contract would establish 62 line positions and three day-staff positions.
Haines said savings from lower staffing levels, reduced overtime pressure and higher employee health insurance contributions were expected to offset some of the cost of the wage increases.
Cuddy argued the agreement represented progress after about nine months of bargaining and said lowering staffing requirements was an important financial gain for the city.
Diego disagreed and spent much of the debate going through the proposed contract provision by provision.
He questioned the 3% annual raises at a time when Auburn has been struggling with its finances, noting that other city employees have received different wage and health insurance terms. He also challenged several contractual stipends, leave provisions, the firefighter salary progression and the amount of overtime already being paid during the current fiscal year.
His most persistent objection involved language that would protect the 65 bargaining-unit positions from being eliminated because of economic or budget constraints.
The proposed agreement says those positions “will not be left vacant, nor abolished due to economic or budgetary constraints,” although the city could delay hiring until an available fire academy begins.
Diego argued that provision could restrict future councils if Auburn faces another serious budget shortfall.
That concern also surfaced during public comment. Resident James Udall urged council not to approve another no-layoff provision, arguing it could limit the city’s flexibility during a future financial crisis.
Overstreet-Wilson said she was also concerned about how the agreement compared with sacrifices made elsewhere in city government and said additional professional labor expertise during negotiations could have been useful.
She emphasized that her opposition wasn’t a criticism of firefighters or the services they provide.
Giannettino cast the deciding third vote against the agreement after saying health insurance remained one of the city’s most significant financial challenges.
“It is, in my opinion, imperative that we fix health insurance for the city of Auburn,” the mayor said before voting no.
The vote leaves the city without an approved successor agreement after the previous Local 1446 contract expired June 30.
No new proposal or timetable for the next step in negotiations was announced during Thursday’s meeting.
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