Schaitberger Welcomes More than 900 to Legislative Conference

March 12, 2007 – The IAFF 2007 Alfred K. Whitehead Legislative Conference kicked off with a record-setting number of delegates – more than 900 – in attendance as a shift in power in Congress has put many friends of the IAFF in positions of power.

The 110th Congress presents fire fighters with a tremendous opportunity to lobby for passage of legislation on a number of key issues, including a national collective bargaining bill, full funding for Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Act, health insurance for early retirees, federal fire fighter presumptive disability benefits and the elimination of over-taxation of the middle class.

As IAFF General President Harold Schaitberger welcomed delegates, he lauded all of the great work of fire fighters in the 2006 election, emphasizing how that hard work will pay off as the IAFF pursues its legislative agenda for the year.

“I don’t know if you noticed, but since we held this Conference last year, we’ve had a lot of new folks move into town – elected officials with new titles, political operatives with new jobs, new committee assignments, new chairmen and new leadership in the House and Senate,” said General President Schaitberger. “You have yourselves to thank for this extraordinary result.”

Schaitberger pointed to many of the IAFF victories in the November election, including Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) and Senator Bob Casey (D-PA). But he called special attention to the relationship between the IAFF and Senator Joe Lieberman (ID-CT).

“We stood with Joe Lieberman in Connecticut, when many of his purported ‘friends,’ including some unions, abandoned him simply because his party label turned from D to I,” said Schaitberger. “But true to our principled reputation, we never wavered, never blinked and never gave a thought to deserting our friend.

“With our ‘gold and black Fire Fighters for Lieberman’ standing at every campaign stop,” he continued, “the results of that work is that today Senator Joe Lieberman is the Chairman of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, one of the most important Senate committees for our members and the issues that make such a profound difference in their lives.”

Working together with members of both parties, President Schaitberger reported that the IAFF is advancing issues critical to ensuring members’ safety. “Staffing levels, equipment and training are at the top of this Congress’ homeland security agenda and, working together, we’ll succeed or we’ll send those who choose not to support us packing in 2008,” he promised.

“I don’t have to tell you that this union’s number-one priority this week will be providing collective bargaining rights for all fire fighters and EMS workers. Nothing is more important to this union. Nothing is more important to our members in improving their standard of living and protecting their safety than their right to organize and bargain a contract.”

Many congressional leaders, including Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD), Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), Senator George Miller (D-CA), Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA) and others, have committed to passing the collective bargaining bill this year.

Speaking about the IAFF Presidential Forum on March 14, President Schaitberger noted that it is the beginning of the process of deciding who the IAFF will endorse. “It is incumbent upon all of us to listen very carefully to what these candidates have to say,” he said. “We must consider their track record and evaluate their support for the issues important to our profession and our members’ lives.”

Ultimately, the IAFF must decide behind which candidate to put the power of this IAFF – which candidate can step up and win. “We need a president who understands and truly believes that it’s a damn disgrace that we have fire fighters in parts of this country -- including in at least two of our communities devastated by Hurricane Katrina -- who make less than $8 an hour,” he decried. “And it is simply nothing less than tragic that 18 months after the great disasters caused by Katrina and Rita, our members are working in stations with no walls, leaking roofs and plumbing systems dripping sewage.”

Schaitberger promised to stand with Gulf Coast fire fighters on Capitol Hill and demand an immediate response. “It’s inexcusable, and it’s time that this government gets it right for our members,” he said.

Schaitberger reminded delegates that there is much work yet to do to achieve great legislative victories in 2007, and to put the IAFF gold and black at center stage for 2008.

“We will be ahead of the curve,” he said. “We will LEAD and we will WIN. When you visit your representatives this week, make sure they are reminded that our members make a difference in their communities -- that our members make a difference come election time – and if they are with us this union will make a difference for them.”

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