One day after an arbitration panel awarded New York City?s police officers a raise amounting to 9.7 percent over two years, the Uniformed Firefighters Association said on Tuesday that it would exercise its option to reopen its contract covering the same two years ? 2004 to 2006. The firefighters received raises of less than 3 percent the first year and 3.15 percent the second year in that now-expired contract. The firefighters? union also said it was halting negotiations on its 2008-10 contract in response to the new police contract. ?We?re going to reopen our contract,? said Stephen J. Cassidy, the union president. He added, ?We?re going to go back and solve the problem of ?04 to ?06.?
See "Seeking Raise, Firefighters Will Reopen Contract", Christine Hauser, The New York Times, May 20, 2008