The International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) has announced how the Milford, CT Local 944 members will receive $300,000 in backpay after discovering the city had been miscalculating overtime pay.
The settlement agreement was approved by a U.S. District Court in Connecticut.
3rd District Vice President Jay Colbert shared: “Our members put their lives on the line every day. And all they want is what’s fair. I am pleased that the city decided to do the right thing and correct this issue.”
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires that longevity pay, education incentive pay, uniform maintenance pay and holiday pay are included as part of firefighter regular rate of pay.
Further, all should be used when calculating overtime.
Local 944 first suspected overtime was being miscalculated in 2023.
IAFF General Counsel Peter Leff said: “Under the IAFF FLSA Policy, IAFF Legal Counsel conducted a review of the city’s pay practices and found enough evidence to suspect some miscalculations had occurred.
“When the city seemed unwilling to correct the issue, we filed a federal lawsuit on Local 944’s behalf.”
After months of litigation, the city agreed to enter settlement negotiations with the 88 members of the Local 944 suit.
Negotiations resulted in an agreement that included backpay and a plan to implement a pay formula that would result in the correct overtime payment calculations prospectively.
Local 944 President Ryan LaGuardia said: “We are pleased that the city has accepted the conditions of the settlement agreement.
“While we appreciate the backpay, the most important thing to us is fair wages going forward.”
The IAFF has highlighted how Connecticut firefighters will receive $300,000 in backpay after discovering the city had been miscalculating overtime pay.
