By Jessica Van Sack and Richard Weir
The Boston Herald
BOSTON — The hard-boiled head of the Boston firefighter union is facing a simmering mutiny within his ranks after betting the house on a failed bid to unseat powerful Mayor Thomas M. Menino.
Now it is Ed Kelly, president of Boston Firefighters Local 718, who could see his position on the line.
“There is a hunger for new leadership,” said a 52-year-old firefighter who asked his name be withheld. “We have waited long enough for a contract, and this plan clearly did not work.”
Several jakes yesterday called on Kelly to pass the torch after Menino scored a decisive win against rival Michael Flaherty.
Kelly, they said, had failed to secure his members a contract in contentious talks with Menino and then spent more than $150,000 on advertising in its failed attempt to oust the mayor.
The firefighters have worked without a contract and pay raise for more than three years. The administration insists firefighters were offered a fair deal: a 14 percent salary hike over four years.
“We have lost out on that money,” said another veteran jake. “It’s three years now. Times are bad. It’s concerning.”
Added the jake: “You need to build bridges, not walls.”
Turning up the heat on Kelly is Menino’s assertion yesterday that he wants to get the bitter contract dispute behind him. “We go back to arbitrating in December. I hope that we are able to get this contract done,” Menino told the Herald as he savored his re-election to an unprecedented fifth four-year term. “I’d like to see this done as quickly as possible.”
As for Kelly, the mayor said, “I’ve got to move forward. The president of the union made some statements. That’s yesterday.”
Without the new negotiating partner the jakes sought in Flaherty, an exiting, at-large city councilor — and barring an unlikely accord between Kelly and Menino — firefighters must roll the dice with the arbitrator, who will likely take another three to five months to rule on their contract.
A rift between the fire union and mayor reached a flashpoint as contract negotiations stalled and the union resisted the city’s demands for random drug and alcohol tests. Last year, a deadly ladder truck accident caused by brake failure spurred more disagreement over equipment maintenance.
Kelly offered no regrets on his election role yesterday. “The Boston firefighters stood together,” he said. “Unfortunately our candidate did not win, but we showed that we are willing to stand up to get true reform.”
Indeed, loyal firefighters dutifully followed Kelly’s lead, personally donating a total of $19,200 to Flaherty’s campaign. Firefighter unions and political groups nationally also pitched in $25,200.
Yet Kelly was battle-weary, saying of Menino, “We are of the same minds. We would like to get this arbitration behind us and move forward.”
In fact, the arbitrator’s ruling could decide Kelly’s fate, one high-ranking jake surmised, saying, “If it falls unfavorably to us, the membership is gonna want a change.”
Copyright 2009 Boston Herald Inc.