Local 700 of the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), a bargaining unit that represents 15 full-time and five part-time firemen in Oil City, said in a Facebook post that every home on the North Side was visited and about 450 signs that read “No fire cuts” were distributed.
The signs are a result of ongoing contract negotiations between the city and the firefighters union, which reportedly include discussions of laying off three full-time firemen and closing the North Side fire station at Plummer Street and Bissell Avenue.
The fire department is approaching the end of a three-year labor agreement that will expire at the end of December.
Nearly two weeks ago, a crowd of people assembled at a city council meeting to express their desire to keep the department’s staffing level the way it is, in addition to keeping the North Side station open.
The union said in the Facebook post from Saturday that it has run out of signs to distribute and is placing an order for more before taking its campaign to the South Side.
