HICKORY, N.C. — The Hickory Fire Fighters Association and city staff members are in a dispute over whether the city's fire department has adequate staffing and pay levels.
The association, which is a local chapter of the International Association of Fire Fighters, claims Hickory firefighters' pay hasn't kept up with inflation, and it's led to high turnover in the department.
Hickory's administrative leaders disagreed with the association's arguments.
Captain John Warren, who serves as president of the Hickory Fire Fighters Association, said the department doesn't have enough firefighters to adequately staff their apparatuses because of high turnover.
"Being a firefighter is always great. Right now, though, with our current wage struggles, it can be frustrating, especially seeing some of the younger guys struggle with the inflation right now," Warren said. "Right now, there's a high demand for firefighters, and they're going to other municipalities who are better benefits package and pay."
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Warren said the Hickory Fire Department has been operating with either understaffed apparatuses or trucks being shut down because there weren't enough firefighters.
He said, as of January 2022, Newton, a smaller city, paid its firefighters a higher starting salary than Hickory.
Rodney Miller, Hickory’s deputy city manager, argued the association's claims are incorrect.
He argued that compared to other departments in the foothills, Hickory is often at the top of the list.
"We're paying well above the average in North Carolina. We're the highest-paid in the four-county [Catawba, Caldwell, Burke, and Alexander] region," Miller said. "At this point, based on recruitment and retention, I don't see an issue with the pay in the fire department nor the staffing levels in the fire department."
Miller believes the department will continue to do a good job protecting the city, while Warren fears the department’s current state could eventually endanger citizens and firefighters.
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