Mobile firefighters’ union weighs options after judge rejects pay incentive case

A lawsuit alleging incentive pay discrepancies between mobile firefighters and police was dismissed Friday.

The lawsuit was first filed in 2022 by the International Association of Fire Fighters, representing the Mobile Fire Rescue Department.

The lawsuit alleged that the City of Mobile illegally offered pay incentives to Mobile police that were not offered to firefighters due to state laws requiring equal pay plans for each department.

Mayor Sandy Stimpson said a recent overhaul of the city’s wage plan makes the union’s claim “moot.”

In September, the city approved a fiscal 2025 budget that overhauled its previous public safety pay plan in an effort to reduce issues that led to the union filing.

IAFF Local 1349 released a statement following the judge’s decision, saying they were disappointed in the decision.

The union said the decision still left “significant issues” unresolved and that they were considering their options regarding the decision.

“The new pay plan increased the pay of many unfortunately underpaid public safety employees, and we are pleased with our efforts to bring this case to this conclusion,” the statement said.

“However, there are also issues with the new pay plan that we will continue to evaluate as the plan is implemented. The Union has a number of options regarding the dismissal, including accepting the court decision, appealing this decision, or even filing new lawsuits. No decision has been made yet, but we will be exploring our options in the near future.” “We will evaluate it carefully.”

Stimpson said the new plan ends the city’s previous practice of offering incentives as a way to address problems with public safety payment plans.

The new base salary for new employees at the Mobile Police Department and Mobile Fire Rescue Department will be $51,402, according to the city.

“This incredible team effort capped decades of using a series of incentives to fix the inadequate pay plan for our police officers and firefighters,” Stimpson said.

“Since this new pay plan came into force in September, the issue at the heart of the fire union’s lawsuit has become a moot point. “We are pleased that the court agreed and decided to dismiss the case.”