City and firefighters union to reopen contract talks

HARLINGEN — After about eight months, the city and firefighters union are reopening contract negotiations.

Tomorrow, city officials and union representatives are expected to meet to jump-start collective bargaining talks that broke down last September as the parties tried to agree to salary, benefits and staffing levels.

The city’s contract with the union expired Oct. 1, but the contract’s evergreen clause allows firefighters to continue to work for as long as a year under current terms and conditions.

On June 8, city officials plan to meet with the local police officers’ union, Sgt. Sal Carmona, former president of the Harlingen Police Officers and Law Enforcement Association, said.

Like the city’s firefighters, police officers here continue to work as a result of an evergreen clause.