MainLine - San Francisco Firefighters Local 798

“As union members we need to stay positive and pay no attentionthe firehouse bull*#@% rumors. Get the straight scoop; cometo a Union meeting and get involved.“Brothers and Sisters,In these challenging times it is difficult tostay focused with the task at hand; the renewedpension battle. We are constantlyattacked on all fronts on our pension andhealth benefits, as well as our wages. Thisreminds me of what I was told 28 yearsago by a seasoned Director of Local 798“…hey kid, fighting for wages and workingconditions is why we’re here”. As unionmembers we need to stay positive andpay no attention the firehouse bull*#@%rumors. Get the straight scoop; come toa Union meeting and get involved. Checkout our updates online or call the officewith your questions. Don’t let the bureaucratsget you down, they are not ourfriends. Be safe, you are the true workhorsesof society. Nobody ever died froma paper cut.Retirement SeminarLetter From the DirectorMichael WalshOn March 1 and 2 the semi-annual RetirementSeminar was held at the clubhouseat Sigmund Stern Grove. Thirty four memberswere in attendance for a comprehensivetwo-day program encompassingissues surrounding retirement. Speakerswere brought in from the RetirementBoard, Health Services, Long Term HealthCare, Estate Planning, Stress Unit, RetiredFirefighters and Local 798 to offer guidanceand answer questions. Congratulationsto the participants who walkedaway with very helpful information asthey head for the “golden years”.Special thanks to Joe Driscoll, Joe Moriarty,Mike Hebel, Frank Jordan, ColleenBales, Gerald Woods, Ken Jones, DoyleMiller, Shon Buford , Tim O’Brien and GailToki –Woo who were the heart of thisseminar. My apologies to our membersthat we couldn’t fit in because of spacelimitation. The plan is to have anotherseminar sometime in the Fall. Good Luckto the new retirees, thanks for your yearsof service and for making room for our futureheroes.Health and SafetyAs a member of the Health and SafetyCommittee I want to stress that it is imperativewe address the safety concernsof our members. I’ve been hearing complaintsabout the Clothing Depot who appearto be making it difficult to get uniformsand safety gear. Be advised, therehas been a change in personnel at the Depotand the administration has assured usthat a new streamlined plan will be put inplace. Safety equipment is our lifeline. Ifyou’re not having your needs taken careof, please use chain of command for requestand report any problems to me viae-mail. Don’t go to TI without first calling-- it might be a wasted trip.The medical glove drama continues.About three months ago, “new” Nitrilemedical gloves showed up at Station 49.Shortly thereafter, the “new” gloves wereissued to all worksites. The Health andSafety Committee was never contactedabout this change. It seems our membersdon’t particularly like the new glovesbecause they don’t have a tight fit anddon’t have the grab the Latex gloves have.One paramedic with 30 years on the jobwho is also an RN said “…you have to takethe Nitrile glove off to start an IV becauseof the grip”… and furthermore, sameparamedic stated that the gloves mightbe better used in a hospital environmentbecause often times the IV‘s are alreadystarted in the field. Logistics was contactedand price immedialty came up. Sincewhen did saving a buck at our member’shealth and safety become the mindset ofour Department?I was told the Latex is no longer going tobe available and rubber is too expensive.The manufacturer was contacted and wewere told that Latex was indeed not discontinuedbut the price on the raw material(rubber) was increasing more thanthe synthetics. How much are we saving?...wellafter talking to our members atStation 49 it seems most of them are doublegloving the Nitrile and are afraid tosay anything for fear of retaliation. Withall that said, the Department is losingany savings it could have hoped for andincreased the cost half as much. Whenthe EMS hierarchy and Logistics was again32 Main Line www.sffdlocal798.org