MORGANTOWN — Ken Tennant, a captain with the Morgantown Fire Department, and for the last 14 years head of the department’s fire marshal division, was recognized Tuesday by city council for his 25 years with the city.
Tennant, who is retiring, said he was honored by the gesture.
“It’s been like a big family to me the last 25 years,” he said, before going to bat for his brothers in the MFD, many of whom were in attendance, and most of whom are currently at odds with city hall over upcoming changes to the city’s personnel rules.
“It’s exciting to hear about building renovations and maybe a new fire station in the future; a training center. All that’s great, but please, members of council, don’t lose sight of the real assets of this organization, and those are the employees who are standing here before you today,” Tennant said, adding “Don’t forget about them when you’re making decisions about policies and things moving forward.”
For the second time in as many meetings, IAFF Local 313 President Mitchell Beall said the firefighters have serious concerns about how the personnel updates — the city’s first significant personnel policy changes since 1993 — will impact firefighters when they take effect July 1.
“A lot of the things in that are going to be, from our standpoint, very negatively impacting our quality of life,” Beall said, explaining that the removal of sick time, a reduced accrual rate for vacation time and the elimination of holidays in favor of premium pay are sticking points.
Further, Beall said Local 313 remains frustrated that City Manager Kim Haws will meet with firefighters individually but will not engage with the union.
“I know this has always been a very pro-labor city. Past administrations, like I said, have met with us. We don’t have a contract with the city, but we do have a voice and we do have a large body of our membership voicing concerns,” Beall said.
After Beall and other representatives of the MFD spoke at the April 19 council meeting, a letter was sent to Haws by the Monongalia /Preston County Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #87, which represents members of the Morgantown Police Department.
That letter backed the firefighters’ call for additional input in the personnel policy changes.
During her comments at the end of Tuesday’s meeting, Deputy Mayor Danielle Trumble said she recently met with city staff, and in particular the city’s firefighters, to hear their concerns.
“So I will be sure that everyone stays up to date on any kind of discussion I have with employees concerning this,” she said. “I would like to hear what the concerns are, and that is something that I did.”
Also on Tuesday, Mayor Jenny Selin presented proclamations recognizing International Rotary Day, Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Day, Infrastructure Week, Municipal Clerk Week, and the inaugural graduating class of the Morgantown Citizens Academy.
