This year’s level-funded budget leaves no room for raises, and Harvard’s on-call firefighters are no exception. While the town employs only one full-time firefighter in addition to the chief, the other 27 firefighters are paid by the call. The Personnel Board approved a 1.4% cost-of-living adjustment for town employees this year, which would add just over $2,000 to the total cost of on-call firefighter wages. But level funding does not allow for even that small amount unless cuts are made elsewhere.
There is little room for cutting in the Fire Department’s budget. Wages represent almost 84% of the $431,000 budget, with training and equipment purchases and maintenance making up the rest. In his written responses to the Finance Committee’s budget questions, Fire Chief Rick Sicard said his firefighters are the department’s number one resource. He added that on-call fire departments across the country typically find it difficult to find firefighters, and “We are very fortunate to have 27 professionals stepping up to fill this need in Harvard.” He said the department has already had to take on firefighters from outside Harvard, currently 37% of the group. Not providing a cost-of-living adjustment this year, Sicard added, sends a message that the town’s firefighters are “not as valued as they should be.”
Sicard said that to reduce costs and make sure enough money was available to pay on-call wages in fiscal year 2021, he stopped paying members for any training beyond the mandatory twice-a-month sessions. He added that most members do additional training to keep up with the latest techniques, and during the first two quarters of fiscal 2021, there was no reduction in training hours despite the lack of compensation. The department’s firefighters completed 360 hours of unpaid training at a cost to themselves of over $9,000.
As for Sicard’s salary, his contract expired on June 30, 2019. He is currently negotiating with Assistant Town Administrator Marie Sobalvarro, who told the Press there should be a resolution by the end of this month. Sobalvarro said she was given the negotiation job after the chief’s contract expired, and since that time she has been overwhelmed with human resource tasks that required more immediate responses as well as with COVID-19-related personnel issues. She added that finding a source of funds to retroactively pay the chief the difference between his new salary and his 2019 salary is a question for Town Administrator Tim Bragan and the Finance Committee.
If additional funds were available, Sicard said the cost-of-living adjustments would come first, but he would also like to add a second full-time firefighter/EMT. He said the job responsibilities of Lt. Andrew Perry, the department’s existing firefighter/EMT, have grown dramatically, and another employee would alleviate some of Perry’s heavy workload. The town is eligible to apply for a Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response, or SAFER, grant that would pay wages, benefits, and provide gear for a full-time firefighter for three years. Sicard said he applied for a SAFER grant when Perry was a new firefighter but did not receive it. He told the Press he would have to get Bragan’s approval to apply for a grant for a new employee.
