IAFF Local 1014

Friday Update 3-28-25

Updated On: Mar 28, 2025

Brothers and Sisters,

Local 1014 continues to bargain alongside the Coalition of County Unions (CCU) for our Fringe Benefits contract and also continues to bargain our safety salary contracts. We have begun taking our issues directly to the Board of Supervisors to increase pressure to authorize the CEO of LA County to prioritize workers as the County budget gets set and contracts that expired are renewed.

This past week, we joined other County Unions with Chair Derek Hsieh from ALADS and the CCU along with Co-Chair President Dave Gillotte and the other CCU Union Presidents and Leaders to attend the County Board of Supervisors Board Meeting to increase the pressure and visibility of the Unions and our issues we are bargaining at the fringe benefits table.

Local 1014 was front and center with our Executive Board members as we talked directly with four of the five Board of Supervisors and the CEO to talk about health care premiums and the needed increases to keep pace with medical inflation and the higher cost of premiums for all health, dental and vision plans, and the need to communicate to the CEO the importance of a timely contract settlement before Choices Open Enrollment in October.

Our presence had a very powerful impact on the CCU bargaining table and we had very good progress on our work to secure increases to the amount of contributions to our members through Choices as we set to select our benefits and have the purchasing power to keep up with cost. This is critical as we also set to negotiate our salary contracts and keep pay in our pockets. With the looming state, federal and local budget crunches, keeping the workers and our contracts front and center as a priority is part of how we work to land a successor MOU for our fringe benefits.

Following our presence at the BOS meeting, we had very robust and productive contract talks and bargaining with the County and we will pick up the progress in two weeks with continued bargaining with medical, dental and vision premiums as the number one goal for the team.

We have money on the table and also are working on pressing to get the increases to contributions as high as we can get them in addition to working to get a long term solution to keep up with medical premiums by indexing and benchmarking to medical inflation. This process has been tedious and complex with our subject matter experts and actuaries working to give good data and basis for our asks and demands. We look forward to continued progress in the coming weeks to secure our critical Fringe Benefit MOU agreement. We also are working on the new holidays in the federal and state works that have now found their way to LA County with Caesar Chavez Day and how we receive those new Holidays. We will keep you updated in the upcoming weeks as we continue to press the County to finish the process of bargaining in this budget environment, but the progress has been good on the fringe side of the tables.

On salary bargaining, with the Sheriffs, Lifeguards and Fire safety tables open, we have seen a stall because the County resources are concentrating on the Fringe with us, and we have called off all salary bargaining until the County gets full authority to bargain over salary issues including Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) and special bonus items, and likely they will time out after the Fringe is settled. We are, however, working on the valuation and cost of the COLA and specifically Plan C items for our members regarding bonus and salary, and we will likely see the table pick back up in the next few weeks as Fringe gets closer to a finish.

SAVE THE DATE- We are also asking our members to join us on April 15th at the BOS meeting as we join the other Unions again to make our presence known. We will have food and beverages in a rally-type setup before the meeting, and more information will be out as we near the 15th of April.

This is your chance to help us work for our Fringe Benefits and the increases we need for 2026. Please check your calendar and make plans to join us if you can. We would like to have at least 30 members and push toward 50 if we can get it done to help with this pressure. Family is welcome to join us as well. Thank you in advance for your help.

LA County Union Firefighters Receive ‘Saving Our City’ Award at Labor 411’s Annual Blue Tie Gala

Last week, the Labor 411 Foundation honored LA County Union Firefighters Local 1014 for its heroism fighting the January firestorms with the “Saving Our City” Award. Local 1014 Director Christopher Cullen accepted the award on behalf of our members. Our longtime friend and labor leader, Senator Maria Elena Durazo, presented the award and thanked Local 1014 for our efforts to support unions in Los Angeles.

Now in its 17th year, Labor 411 is committed to building a national Buy Union, Buy American movement as a means of improving the safety and economic well being of union workers and their families. We are committed to working hand in hand with labor to organize the unorganized and mobilize our members’ political and purchasing power so that workers can create a better life for themselves and their families.

The Blue Tie Gala is the annual fundraiser for the Labor 411 Foundation, the nonprofit educational arm of Labor 411. The mission of the Foundation is to advocate for the creation and protection of good jobs through consumer activism.

1014 Stewards Program

Are you interested in getting involved with 1014? Do you want to know more about the Union and the Department's inner workings?

If so, the new 1014 Stewards Program may be for you. You’ll act as a communications link between 1014’s officers and its members, providing quality information up and down the chain. You’ll learn our MOU and civil service rules so well, others will come to you for answers to their questions. Same with discipline and grievance procedures: even if it’s not a problem you can solve, you’ll be able to put them in touch with a director who can. Above all, as a steward, you’ll represent Local 1014’s members at all times.

If all this sounds like an opportunity you’d like to pursue, follow the link below and fill out the interest form. You’ll be contacted regarding an info session within the coming weeks. 1014 is strong because of its members. If you think you have something to offer to make it even stronger, you’re exactly who we’re looking for.

Stewards Program Interest Form

RETIREMENT SEMINAR

The Department’s Peer Support Team is hosting a seminar for Department employees and their spouses, nearing retirement. The seminar will focus on the challenges of retirement, how to plan for the transition, and life away from the fire service. Retired peer support members will provide an introduction to their mentorship program, and the Department’s mental health professionals will offer behavioral health stages for retirement.

The Retirement Seminar will take place as follows:

Monday, April 21, 2025
9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Cottonwood Church
4505 Katella Avenue
Los Alamitos, CA 90720

Those wishing to attend, please click here to RSVP below by April 16, 2025.

If you have any questions, please contact the Peer Support Coordinators, Fire Captain Steve Blackburn, at (213) 424-5729 or Fire Captain Vince Roldan, at (213) 507-1782.

Click here to register

In Solidarity,

President Dave Gillotte and the Local 1014 Executive Board