Some union property returned to fire hall

Kalispell firefighters will move union-owned furniture and memorabilia back into their firehouse today.

The union and city officials came to an agreement Friday that allows the International Association of Firefighters Local 547 to move assets back onto city property without relinquishing ownership.

However, union files and other union-owned equipment used to conduct union business are still barred from city property.

And the union and city officials are still at odds over office space on city property that the union says it has used for more than 40 years.

"The resolution to this disagreement will be processed within channels afforded the union by their collective bargaining agreement and state law," an International Association of Firefighters spokesman said in a release. "It is hoped these issues will be resolved short of a full arbitration on the subject."

Following a directive from city management, Kalispell firefighters spent Tuesday morning removing all union property from the city's fire halls.

Refrigerators, mattresses, memorabilia, food items, computers and files were loaded into a trailer and taken to a nearby storage facility.

Firefighters say they were protecting assets that an overly broad directive from city officials threatened to appropriate.

City officials say the firefighters' interpretation of the directive was taken too far.

In a letter to International Association of Firefighters president Cory Horsens, Chief Randy Brodehl directed the union to remove any and all union-owned property from city property and cease any union activities in city facilities except as provided for in the labor contract.

The letter, dated Oct. 3, gave the union until Oct. 17 to comply or risk having the property confiscated by the city.

But the intended purpose of the directive was to compel the union to remove sensitive records that management shouldn't have access to, not to force the firefighters into spartan living quarters, City Manager Jim Patrick said Tuesday.

In addition, union use of city property impacts the department's ability to use those areas for operational purposes, he said.

But organized labor activities at the fire hall that city officials sought to ban are protected in the city's contract with the union, union representatives said.

And if the intent of city officials was to remove only certain items, their directive should have indicated as much, they added.

"The communication in this instance was poor from the beginning, starting with the original directive up to and including the day of the move," a union statement read. "The agreement with the city is a positive move toward settling this dispute."

The contract between the firefighters' union and the city will expire in June 2008. Negotiations for a new contract are expected to begin in January.

Reporter Nicholas Ledden can be reached at 758-4441 or by e-mail at nledden@dailyinterlake.com