Liberty trustees agree to hire 6 part-time firefighters

LIBERTY

Citing a staffing pinch, township trustees voted Thursday to hire six new part-time firefighters.

Pending pre-employment drug testing, the firefighters will each earn $14 an hour without medical benefits.

Trustee Jodi Stoyak said the township decided to increase the hourly wage from $10.50 after Fire Chief Gus Birch advised of difficulties recruiting part-timers who could earn more at other departments.

The new hires come on the heels of complaints from the local chapter of the International Association of Fire Fighters union that the department is having trouble staffing each shift.

Scheduling challenges with part-timers have, at times, forced the department to close one of its two fire stations.

Firefighters say response times lag when one station is closed or when the township must call in outside private or public ambulances.

Read more about the situation in Friday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.