HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council - 6639 RESOLUTION NO.6539
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF HUNTINGTON BEACH
ADOPTING HEARING OFFICER'S
DECISION ON MINIMUM STAFFING AND
FILLING OF VACANCIES IN THE
HUNTINGTON BEACH FIRE DEPARTMENT
WHEREAS,the City of Huntington Beach (City) and-the Huntington Beach
Firefighters Association (HBFA) met and conferred on Minimum Staffing and Filling of
Vacancies during the 1989-1992 Contract Negotiations; and
After protracted meetings, impasse was reached on Minimum Staffing and Filling
of Vacancies; and
Both the City's and the HBFA's positions were presented to a mutually agreeable
Hearing Officer; and
The Hearing Officer, Philip Tamoush, considered both the City's and the HBFA's
positions; and
On May 12, 1993 the Hearing Officer ruled on Minimum Staffing and Filling of
Vacancies language as contained in Exhibit 1; and
The City and the HBFA after meeting again could not agree on the Hearing
Officer's language including the City's last offer dated August 30, 1994.
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NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED,the City Council of the City of
Huntington Beach does hereby unilaterally adopt the Hearing Officer's Minimum Staffing
and Filling of Vacancies language as contained in the Huntington Beach Fire Department's
Policy D-14, dated September 1, 1994, and attached hereto.
PASSED AND ADOPTED by the City Council of the City of Huntington Beach
at a regular meeting thereof held on the 17th day of o--tober , 1994.
,......
Mayor
ATTEST: APPROVED AS TO FORM:
City Clerk City At orne
REVIEWED AND APPROVED: I1`IITIATED AND APPROVED:
ACiyvninistr to Fire Chief
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6639
HUNTINGTON BEACH FIRE DEPARTMENT SECTION D
ORGANIZATION MANUAL PERSONNEL
SEPTEMBER 1, 1994 Policy D-14
MINIMUM STAFFING AND FILLING OF VACANCIES
I. PURPOSE
To set forth the minimum staffing levels established by the Huntington Beach Fire
Department.
Ii. POLICY
It shall be the policy of the Huntington Beach Fire Department to maintain the staffing
levels set forth herein.
III. OBJECTIVE
The Huntington Beach Fire Department will provide an efficient fire suppression and
emergency response organization through adequate staffing of fire apparatus to ensure
personnel safety and fire suppression effectiveness.
IV. RESPONSIBILITY
It shall be the responsibility of the shift Battalion Chief to ensure that each fire stations
and apparatus are fully staffed according to this policy.
V. PROCEDURE
The Huntington Beach Fire Department will staff and fill vacancies as defined and
specified in Exhibit 1 (attached).
APPROVED _ DATE: 16 /
MICHAEL P. DOLDER, Fire Chief
MPD/cgs
attachment
zldatald14org.doc(replaces policy dated September 17,1982) Page 1
6639
HUNTINGTON BEACH FIRE DEPARTMENT SECTION D
ORGANIZATION MANUAL PERSONNEL
SEPTEMBER 1, 1994 POLICY D-14
EXHIBIT 1
MINIMUM STAFFING AND FILLING OF VACANCIES
A. DEFINITIONS
For purposes of this Article the following definitions are hereby established:
1. APPARATUS shall be defined as any vehicle utilized to respond to fires, other
emergencies or work assignments which requires a California Class A, Class B, or Class B
firefighter restrictive driver's license.
(a) A FIRE ENGINE is an apparatus with fire pump, fire hose, water tank,
ground ladders, necessary firefighting equipment, and may include a "telesquirt" type ladder,
but specifically excluding aerial ladder or platform capabilities.
(b) A FIRE TRUCK is an apparatus that has mounted on the chassis, an aerial
ladder or aerial platform, "TRUCK COMPANY" equipment, and may include a fire pump, fire
hose, and water tank.
(c) A HAZARDOUS MATERIALS (HAZ MAT) UNIT is an apparatus
which has tools and equipment used in the mitigation of Hazardous Materials incidents.
(d) A PARAMEDIC ENGINE or a PARAMEDIC ASSESSMENT ENGINE
is a Fire Engine that carries Advanced Life Support equipment.
(e) A PARAMEDIC UNIT is any Fire Department vehicle, other than a Fire
Engine or Fire Truck, that carries Advanced Life Support equipment.
(f) A SPECIAL PURPOSE APPARATUS is apparatus (as described in No.
1 above), not otherwise defined in this Article and utilized for response to alarms.
2. A FIRE COMPANY is a firefighting force commanded by a single Fire Captain
(or a person assigned/qualified as such).
3. IN-SERVICE shall be defined as personnel, apparatus, and/or equipment which
are available for dispatch to an alarm or actively involved in an alarm.
B. MINIMUM STAFFING
The CITY shall cause apparatus to be staffed with sufficient personnel to assure the
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6639
HUNTINGTON BEACH FIRE DEPARTMENT SECTION D
ORGANIZATION MANUAL PERSONNEL
SEPTEMBER 1, 1994 POLICY D-14
safety of employees and the control of risk. For these purposes, the minimum staffing shall be
as follows:
1. Each Fire Company shall be staffed with a minimum of three (3) personnel and
may be assigned various firefighting or other emergency related activities as well as routine
duties. Fire Companies are generally assigned as Engine Companies or Truck Companies when
they operate with a Fire Engine or Fire Truck apparatus. They may, however, operate without
apparatus or with more than one (1) vehicle or apparatus. When operating with more than one
(1) vehicle or apparatus, the minimum staffing requirements of this Section shall be required
when the vehicle is operated on an incident scene. Apparatus responding Code 3 shall be staffed
with a minimum of two (2) persons.
2. Each in-service Engine Company shall be staffed with no less than one (1) Fire
Captain, one (1) Fire Engineer, and one (1) Firefighter. Any member may be a Paramedic.
(a) In the event that a member is temporarily detached from a Company, and
where qualified personnel are available, the Company may continue to respond (for a period not
to exceed four (4) hours) to medical aid calls and single engine alarms until a replacement can
be obtained pursuant to Policy D-3 (Callback Staffing System). A second fully staffed engine
shall be dispatched Code 2 whenever a two (2) person company responds.
3. Each in-service Truck Company shall be staffed with no less than one (1) Fire
Captain, one (1) Fire Engineer and two (2) Firefighters. Any member may be a Paramedic.
4. Each in-service Paramedic Unit shall be staffed with no less than two (2)certified
Paramedics.
5. Each in-service Paramedic Engine Company shall be staffed with no less than one
(1) Fire Captain, one (1) Fire Engineer, and two (2) Firefighters. Two (2) of the members must
be certified Paramedics.
6. Each in-service Paramedic Assessment Engine Company shall be staffed with no
less than one (1) Fire Captain, one (1) Fire Engineer, and one (1) Firefighter. One (1) of the
members must be a certified Paramedic.
7. Each in-service Hazardous Materials apparatus shall be staffed with a Fire
Company of which the regularly assigned personnel shall be specially trained in Hazardous
Materials incident practices and procedures in accordance with Article VIII, Section D, Part 5
of the Fire MOU. One or more of the personnel staffing the Hazardous Materials apparatus may
be assigned as technical advisors to an emergency's Incident Commander: When this occurs,
the remaining personnel may be reassigned to other companies involved in the incident including
the Newport Beach Haz Mat Team or other Hazardous Materials Joint Powers Authority
providers.
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HUNTINGTON BEACH FIRE DEPARTMENT SECTION D
ORGANIZATION MANUAL PERSONNEL
SEPTEMBER 1, 1994 POLICY D-14
S. Special Purpose Apparatus shall be staffed with no less than one (1)person a(Fire
Engineer or Firefighter assigned/qualified as such) when responding Code 2 and with no less
than two (2) personnel (one of whom must be a Fire Engineer or a Firefighter assigned/qualified
as a Fire Engineer) when responding Code 3 to alarms.
.9. Fire apparatus not considered to be in service shall not be required to have
personnel assigned to them for the purposes of this Article.
10. The minimum staffing as set forth in this Article, shall be specifically and
exclusively from Public Safety employees of the Huntington Beach Fire Department for all
routine activities and normal shift duties. Reserve Firefighters shall not be used to meet
minimum staffing levels.
(a) No employee shall be assigned to more than one (1) Fire Company at the
same time for all routine activities and normal shift duties.
(b) Routine activities and normal shift duties shall include those emergencies
that would normally be handled by the on-duty suppression force.
C. MINIMUM STAFFING OF.COMMUNICATIONS
There shall be at least three (3) Fire Controllers on duty at all times consisting of any
combination of Fire Controllers or Fire Controller-Shift Supervisors. The ASSOCIATION shall
be notified yearly by January 31 regarding staffing changes for the following fiscal year. If a
Management decision is made to make staffing changes the Parties may engage in the "Meet and
Confer in good faith" process at either's request. Such negotiations shall be controlled by the
timelines of Section F. below.
D. FELLING OF VACANCIES
1. Employees acting in a higher classification, when properly qualified, shall be
considered equivalent to the required classification.
(a) Employees acting in a higher classification shall be paid acting pay for all
time worked in the higher class when the time cumulatively exceeds two (2) hours within one
(1), 24 hour shift. Acting pay will be calculated based on the step range of the higher
classification which provides at least a five percent range differential. For example, a
Firefighter at E step who is qualified and acts as an Engineer will be compensated at the hourly
rate of a D step Engineer which is equal to or greater than a five percent differential.
2. Any employee assigned to serve in the capacity of Battalion Chief's Aide, shall
not be utilized to satisfy any of the minimum staffing requirements except as set forth in this
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HUNTINGTON BEACH FIRE DEPARTMENT SECTION D
ORGANIZATION MANUAL PERSONNEL
SEPTEMBER 1, 1994 POLICY D-14
Article. The BC's Aide may be utilized to fill a position for which he/she is qualified to serve
in cases of temporary fill-in of four (4) hours or less.
3. Either one (1) Firefighter or one (1) Firefighter Paramedic assigned to a Truck
Company may be utilized for special assignments for a period not to exceed four (4) hours.
4. REPLACEMENT CALLBACK. When a vacancy exists on any apparatus the
Department will be obligated to meet minimum staffing obligations of this Article by use of off
duty personnel on an overtime basis. In the event an apparatus is placed out of service, those
persons previously assigned thereto may be utilized to fill any vacancy prior to the use of off
duty personnel on an overtime basis.
5. When a vacancy exists on any apparatus, the vacancy shall be filled rank for rank
based upon the provisions of the Fire Department Policy D-3 (Callback Staffing System).
E. NEW EQUIPMENT
1. If the City makes a managerial decision to change staffing levels provided for in
the MOU, or to utilize any new apparatus over and above that presently in use, the City and
Association shall Meet and Confer in good faith prior to such action being implemented.
2. The Meet and Confer process/obligation shall apply to any managerial decision
to eliminate any paramedic unit(s)/van(s).
F. CHANGES IN STAFFING
If the Meet and Confer is requested by either party, as indicated in the two (2) special
Sections above (Fire Controller and New Equipment/Changes in Staffing), the Parties shall
complete the process (including any impasse procedure) within 60 days, unless otherwise
extended by mutual agreement.
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6639
Res. No. 6639
STATE OF CALIFORNIA )
COUNTY OF ORANGE ) ss:
CITY OF HUNTINGTON BEACH )
I, CONNIE BROCKWAY, the duly elected, qualified City Clerk of
the City of Huntington Beach, and ex-officio Clerk of the City Council of said
City, do hereby certify that the whole number of members of the City Council of
the City of Huntington Beach is seven; that the foregoing resolution was passed
and adopted by the affirmative vote of at least a majority of all the members of said
City Council at a regular meeting thereof held on the 17th day of October, 1994,
by the following vote:
AYES: Councilmembers:
Bauer, Moulton-Patterson, Winchell, Leipzig, Sullivan
NOES: Councilmembers:
Silva
ABSENT: Councilmembers:
Robitaille
City Clerk and ex-officio Clerk
of the City Council of the City
of Huntington Beach, California