100-plus safety forces workers get layoff notices in Cleveland

By Joe Guillen

Plain Dealer Reporter

The city of Cleveland sent layoff notices Wednesday to more than 100 safety forces workers whose unions have not yet accepted the mayor's proposed pay cuts.

Safety Director Martin Flask said he signed notices for 67 police patrol officers, 38 firefighters and six emergency medical technicians. The notices, effective Jan. 11, would be rescinded if the unions agree to a pay cut of about 4 percent that Mayor Frank Jackson has requested, Flask said. Additional notices were sent to supervisors who can avoid layoffs by accepting a reduction in rank.

Flask said it's up to union leaders to avoid job losses. Each union decides independently whether to accept the city's offer.

"I do not want to put anyone on the street," Flask said.

Union leaders said they will continue to negotiate with the city to avoid layoffs, despite the difficult deadline they have been forced to work under. The city has given each union a dollar amount that needs to be trimmed. The saving must be cuts, not deferrals to another year.

"We have not had an adequate time to talk about what they're looking for," said Susannah Muskovitz, an attorney representing the EMS union. "I don't know if that's by design or if it's by a lack of design."