Union reps present bargaining-driven ordinance changes on bereavement, holiday and sick-time accrual; council holds item in committee

Representatives of the Lawrence Professional Firefighters Association and the Fraternal Order of Police spoke to the Lawrence City Common Council on May 4 about ordinance changes tied to recently negotiated contract language.

Nick Bridal, a representative for the firefighters, told the council the unions provided the Baker Tilly financial report used in negotiations and described three main ordinance changes: an increase in bereavement leave (firefighters from 24 hours to three shifts; police from approximately three shifts to six shifts), a higher holiday‑time rollover cap for hires after 2019 (requested increase from 96 hours to 250 hours), and a proposal to raise the sick‑time accrual cap to allow access to hardship leave without increasing end‑of‑employment payout amounts.

Trustee Resch presented per‑incident financial estimates using a conservative 25‑year certified salary rate to model potential costs. Resch said the per‑incident cost under that model would increase materially (he cited model outputs showing roughly a $1,900 increase per bereavement incident for a long‑tenured firefighter using the study assumptions) and recommended the council request historical usage data to estimate annualized cost. "We thought a conservative number to use was our certified salary rate," Resch said during the presentation.

Councilors pressed for clarity on scope and affordability. Councilor Wells asked whether the proposals cover civilian employees; presenters said the bargaining units negotiated for merit/public‑safety staff and that expansion to civilian employees would be a separate administration decision. Councilors also requested data on how often bereavement leave was used in recent years and a comparative package from municipalities of similar size.

Union speakers emphasized internal controls intended to limit misuse. "Anytime somebody uses bereavement, they have to submit that to their supervisor... and then that gets submitted up to the administration for approval as well," one union representative said.

The council did not vote on the ordinance package. President reminded members that the item remains in committee (public safety/Committee of the Whole) and that the council will meet to review the package prior to the next mid‑month meeting. No committee action occurred that evening.

What happens next: Councilors asked staff to produce historical usage numbers for bereavement and to provide comparable municipal policies; further committee consideration was scheduled before the next council meeting.