Key Points
- The city of Apopka and its firefighters union reached a tentative three-year agreement for fiscal years 2027 to 2029 on Thursday.
- The agreement requires approval by union members and the City Commission, with a special commission meeting scheduled for Sept. 24 to consider it.
The city of Apopka and its firefighters union reached a tentative agreement Thursday on a three-year collective bargaining agreement covering fiscal years 2027 through 2029, with the proposed contract now headed to union members for a vote.
The tentative agreement would succeed the firefighters’ current collective bargaining agreement, which expires Sept. 30.
Apopka Professional Firefighters Association Local 5293 President Kyle Lampp confirmed Friday that the union and city reached a tentative agreement and that no issues remain unresolved. The agreement must still be approved by union membership and then by the City Commission before taking effect.
The City Commission is expected to consider the agreement during a special meeting beginning at 2:30 p.m. Sept. 24 at Apopka City Hall. The city’s meeting calendar lists the special commission meeting for that date and time.
Thursday’s negotiations, held at the Leroy F. Gilliam Training Center, included a review of proposed changes throughout the contract, including provisions dealing with medical screenings, pensions, promotions, holiday pay and what happens if a successor agreement is not reached when the contract expires.
One of the most extensively discussed provisions involved what officials referred to as “frozen time.”
Fire Chief Wil Rivera-Sanchez said the issue received “deep discussion” at the city level because it extends beyond the approximately 27 eligible Fire Department employees. He said the mayor and commissioners wanted the matter reviewed citywide, including with legal counsel, rather than addressed exclusively through the firefighters’ agreement. The city therefore requested that the provision be removed from the contract.
Lampp said the union agreed to remove the provision with the mutual understanding that the city would examine the issue for all city employees affected by frozen time. He deferred questions about the specific meaning and history of frozen time to city or fire administration. City Public Information Director Steven Montiero separately confirmed that the issue affects employees outside the Fire Department.
Other proposed changes discussed Thursday included updated medical-screening language intended to avoid tying the city to a specific testing vendor; clarification of pension provisions; and wording specifying that a 10% promotional increase applies to rank-to-rank promotions within the bargaining units.
The parties also discussed holiday-pay language intended to clarify which employee receives holiday pay when time trades or overtime are involved. Under the proposal discussed, the benefit would go to the employee who actually works the qualifying portion of the holiday shift.
Article 25 would provide that if a successor agreement has not been reached by Sept. 30, 2029, the existing agreement would remain in status quo until a new agreement is ratified.
Lampp said the tentative agreement would help the department remain competitive in recruiting new firefighters while retaining current personnel.
Montiero said the proposed agreement is still going through the voting process and that negotiation documents are not yet being released. He said the documents will become available once they are put together and become public record.