What’s becoming more and more clear is that there’s something systemically wrong with the Gilroy Fire Department. What’s wrong is exemplified by the ongoing lawsuit brought against our community for overtime pay by well-compensated assistant fire chiefs Phil King and Ed Bozzo (retired). What’s wrong is exemplified by the fact that the firefighters are the only group to ever force the city into binding arbitration. What’s wrong is exemplified by the fact that the firefighters union again hasn’t settled contract negotiations with the city.
What’s right would be a very serious look by the City of Gilroy to contract out for fire services. Perhaps the City Council is weary enough at this point to direct staff to deliver an in-depth report with a Return on Investment component that considers contracting out for fire services.
Morgan Hill has done it for years and our neighboring city’s contract with CAL FIRE hasn’t resulted in complaints or poor service, but it has resulted in substantial cost savings and far less squabbling and strife. The addition of Gilroy into that mix might even lower costs for both cities.
It’s a shame that the situation seems to get worse and worse to the point that the only way to fix it is to, pardon the euphemism, burn it to the ground and start over again.
Being a Gilroy firefighter is a good job – top-notch training, pay and benefits in a great community. But it seems the operative word in the fire department is “more” when it should be “grateful.”
The battalion chiefs’ lawsuit over their claim of $30,000 in back overtime pay – despite the fact that both were clearly supervisory personnel at the time – is the consummate example of the seemingly pervasive greed element within our fire department. It’s a shameful self-interest lawsuit without merit, and it’s clear that King and Bozzo care only about lining their pockets further at the expensive of Gilroyans.
There is no sympathy on this Editorial Board for either. King is earning $180,232 annually. Bozzo is retired on a pension that pays him $10,800 monthly for life. But that’s not enough for either, apparently.
It’s the kind of scratch-your-head circumstance that stays in people’s minds and gives a rotten name to all those who are public employees.
It’s a shame really because there are plenty of public employees who work very hard and earn far less.
It’s high time the City Council looks seriously at contracting out for fire services. That seems to be the only solution.
