NY Times – March 24, 2015
When he became a Firefighter, Kevin Hamilton knew he was signing up for a risky job. But it wasn’t until he graduated from the Fire Academy in 2012 that he realized how much his loved ones would be at risk if he got hurt.
“I gotta think for my family,” he said last week, explaining that his three children between four and seven years old are relying on his income alone.
Mr. Hamilton joined the FDNY too late to qualify for the more-generous disability payments given to those hired before 2010 who are forced to retire by on-the-job injuries. A Wide Gulf on Benefit
They get three-quarters of their final average salary tax-free. Mr. Hamilton would receive just half of his final average, minus half of any Social Security disability benefits he receives. And the payments would be taxable.
According to the police and fire unions, that works out to about $27 a day for a rookie, far below what colleagues hired before 2010 would receive.
“I’m a father of three,” he said. “How could I possibly serve my community and make them proud [and]…in helping my community, get injured, fail my family? I’m a provider for my family.”
The Firefighter has taken out private insurance to supplement the potential disability payout, as well as a private life-insurance policy. The disability insurance alone costs $360 a month and only provides benefits for five years, but his family would receive an additional $1,200 a month.
“Unfortunately, if something happens, I’d much rather my family be compensated than to have a question in the air,” he said.
Mr. Hamilton was among the hundreds of firefighters who attended a March 16 rally outside City Hall to protest the benefit cuts. The Uniformed Firefighters’ Association organized it to pressure the City Council and Mayor de Blasio to give members like Mr. Hamilton parity with their longer-serving brethren. It coincided with a video advertisement featuring 12 Firefighters, mostly black or Latino.
Then-Gov. David Paterson triggered the change in July 2009 when he vetoed a bill that had been passed routinely for decades extending the stronger Tier 2 pension rights, including disability benefits, to future police and firefighters.
Mr. de Blasio and Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito have opposed the fix, citing an estimate by former Chief City Actuary Robert C. North Jr. that it would cost $35 million in Fiscal Year 2015 alone.
Mr. North later acknowledged that this figure represented a worst-case scenario. He’d surveyed disability costs from the previous 10 years and projected them into the future. UFA President Steve Cassidy called the figure “flat-out false” in an interview with this newspaper, arguing that Sept. 11-related illnesses and injuries completely distorted the picture.
Claims Cuomo Supportive
“Listen, the Governor and those in Albany already know and I believe already are in our corner to fix this,” he added. “I think some of the people behind us in City Hall aren’t so sure.”
Mr. Cassidy needs the Council to approve a home-rule message allowing state legislators to equalize the benefits. More than a dozen Council Members spoke at the rally, and the union is reportedly close to winning approval for a resolution that would require the lawmakers to hold a hearing on the matter.
Part of the issue for Mr. Cassidy is his belief that new Firefighter candidates aren’t aware of just how unprotected they’ll be.
The FDNY pulls a “bait-and-switch” on its members by not adequately informing new recruits, he said. “So they were sold a bill of goods. They weren’t told the truth.”
Cites Growing Diversity
The UFA has highlighted the fact that the newest classes are far more diverse than the contingents that joined before 2010. The heads of the black, Latino, and Asian fraternal societies urged change at the rally, with Vulcan Society of Black Firefighters President Regina Wilson speaking through a representative.
Jorge Luis Torres, president of the Hispanic Society, expressed his concern about his own son who just joined the force in the latest class.
He acknowledged the Hispanic Society’s focus on attracting new members. (The group did not join the Vulcan lawsuit alleging hiring discrimination against the department, but recent presidents have urged the FDNY to court Latinos by visiting diverse neighborhoods as well as recruiting from athletic and military groups.)
“One of our biggest concerns is recruitment, and now we’ve taken three steps back,” Mr. Torres said.
‘Can’t Live on $27 a Day’
New Firefighters also spoke, including Giselle King, who appears in the UFA video. “I love this job and I love this city,” she said. “But God forbid something happens to me in the line of duty, I want to be able to afford to live in the city that I swore to serve and protect. And I can’t do that on $27 a day.” Many of the firefighters at the rally were veterans hired long before the benefit change. Asked if people in his firehouse feel strongly about the issue, Mr. Hamilton quickly answered, “Everybody. From the senior man that’s about to retire tomorrow to the person who just walked in the door yesterday. Everybody.”
He added, “We know each other’s families. So it’s important if I see my senior man’s daughter, I’m feeling for him if he gets injured, as does he for me.”
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