The Oxford Fire Department will not become a union shop thanks to increased cooperation and communication between full-time personnel and members of the Oxford Public Fire and EMS Commission.
Oxford’s three full-time firefighters recently decided to discontinue their efforts to unionize.
In a June 20 letter to OPFEC Chairman Bill Dunn, the firefighters wrote, ‘This letter is to inform you and the Commission that the undersigned employees of the Oxford Fire Department have decided to withdraw our request to seek the (International Association of Fire Fighters) as the bargaining unit for full-time firefighters. By signing this letter, we are agreeing to forego union representation at this time; however, we do not surrender our rights to seek representation in the future.?
The letter was signed by full-time firefighters Ron Jahlas, Terry Roeher and Brad Horton.
‘It was a personal decision,? Jahlas said. ‘We’ve felt more cooperation from the board. (The officials) are working with us real well now. We just wanted a say in things and to know it’s not a one-way street.?
‘They’ve made their decision and that’s fine. It was there choice to make,? Dunn said. ‘I’m just happy we were able to resolve things without the usual ugliness or legal costs.?
A perceived lack of communication between OPFEC and the firefighters, uncertainty over which governmental entity will eventually own/oversee the department and fears over job security led full-time fire personnel to begin pursuing union representation in February.
‘We were worried they could come in one day and fire any one of us or all of us,? Jahlas said. ‘We just wanted some protection.?