Police, Fire Unions Say 'No Charge' to July 4 Work

In a tough budget, every penny goes a long way. At day's end, iconic celebrations like the Fourth of July parade and fireworks have a bottom line, too.

This year, police and fire officials will work Ridgewood's 100th Independence Day celebration for free—saving the nonprofit committee and village thousands of dollars.

"Most of the guys grew up in town or are Ridgewood High School grads," fire department union leader Greg Hillerman said. "The Fire Department is one of those groups that started [the celebration] 100 years ago. We are a patriotic group, and we want it to go on."

Ridgewood PBA President Rosario Vaccarella couldn't agree more.

"It's such a big event. Sometimes, you really have to think about the bigger picture," he said. "It's tough because we work it every year, but this is the 100-year anniversary."

Earlier this year, the Village Council—hoping to balance a budget where it could—stopped paying for overtime police and fire services at large-scale events (like the parade and the Chamber of Commerce's Downtown for the Holidays).

Instead of charging the nonprofit Fourth of July Committee—funded through sponsorships and charitable donations and not directly affiliated with the village—the police and fire unions voted to forego overtime payments.

Although specific numbers aren't available Vaccarella estimated a $16,000 savings, as nearly the entire department will volunteer. Hillerman said its savings was somewhere between $4,000 and $5,000.

At the ceremony itself, police conduct crowd control while fire officials administer the fireworks. The massive influx of people to Ridgewood requires additional services from both departments.  

Despite working for free, the groups still represent the village and it remains responsible for their liability. Village attorney Matthew Rogers said, "Since the police and fire personnel are still performing services commensurate with their village duties, the liability remains the same." 

In the tough budget year—one in which 27 village workers will reportedly be terminated—police and fire officials said they were responding to a challenge from Village Manger Dr. Kenneth Gabbert to devise creative ways to save money.

"We're trying to show the village manager that the department is willing work with the village and avoid layoffs," Vaccarella said.

The police will also volunteer to work overtime for Downtown for the Holidays at an estimated $4,000 to $5,000 savings.

After the June 2 council meeting, union representative Mark Butler said four police jobs were in jeopardy. Although the fire department hasn't learned of any direct terminations, Hillerman said it's working hard to avoid them.

In renegotiating its union contract through 2014, Hillerman said the department deferred raises, agreed to claim overtime payments with days off instead through direct payment, and lowered the starting salary for new hires. He estimated a $750,000 savings over the next four years for the department's immediate actions.

The Independence Day celebration commences at 9 a.m. July 5 with the parade at 10 a.m., and gates for the fireworks opening at 6:30 p.m. Fireworks tickets for access to Veterans Field are still available. The parade is free.