An injunction sought by the city of Morgantown to prevent a civil service hearing sought by 48 of its firefighters has been put aside, for now.
United States District Court Judge Thomas Kleeh on Tuesday questioned his ability to issue an injunction against the city’s fire civil service commission due to jurisdictional concerns, but gave the city more time to make its case that he can and should enjoin the individual firefighters from making those civil service claims.
This according to Teresa Toriseva, the attorney representing the firefighters and members of the International Association of Fire Firefighters Local 313.
This week has seen the first activity in relation to the actions of Sept. 7, when the IAFF Local 313 and the Mon Preston Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 87 each brought lawsuits and claims of civil service violations against the city of Morgantown.
Both the police and fire departments have expressed concerns with changes to city policy that, they say, will disproportionately impact their pay and benefits, and therefore, their ability to fill open positions.
The lawsuits claim those changes were retaliation for previous actions brought against the city by the FOP and IAFF. The civil service claims assert the city’s new pay and compensation plan illegally reduced police and firefighter pay/benefits outside the provisions provided in state code for retaliatory purposes.
The city had the issues moved from Monongalia County Circuit Court to the United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia, for which Kleeh is chief judge.
In its argument, the city claims there’s no standing for the civil service commission to take up the matter, noting, “Plaintiffs are seeking to litigate the same claims that are pending before this Court before the Morgantown Fire Civil Service Commission, a statutory body with limited jurisdiction to conduct examinations for appointments, promotional examinations and hold hearings to determine whether just cause exists for disciplinary charges against officers.”
And later adding, “these employees have not been subject to discipline, have not been charged with misconduct, and have not been prevented from performing or being paid for their usual duties. Rather, they object to the general pay and benefit practices of Morgantown.”
The civil service hearing the city is looking to block actually began Monday morning. A continued hearing has been set for Oct. 17 to take evidence, pending any future rulings from Judge Kleeh.
Toriseva said she intended to file a motion to have the matter remanded back to circuit court.
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