Trending
PARKERSBURG -- A judge in Wood County ruled Wednesday for firefighters in a lawsuit claiming the city of Parkersburg violated a state wage law since 2017 and miscalculated their pay.
Wood County Circuit Judge Robert A. Waters earlier ruled in October for the employees, but Wednesday ordered the city to stop raising or relying upon a reinterpretation of two pre-2008 city ordinances other than the 2008 longevity plan to justify the 2017 reduction of the longevity pay portion of the hourly rates of pay.
No pre-2008 ordinances were ever used by the city in defense of the 2017 reduction of the hourly pay rates, Waters said.
The city also was ordered to:
* Restore the reduction to hourly pay rates at the next regular pay period.
* Calculate within 15 days the backpay, with legal interest, owed.
* Correct the retirement pay rate of the affected firefighters.
The amount is in the cents per hour, but it has accrued over five years, said Walt Auvil, the attorney representing the firefighters. That and the retirement have yet to be determined, he said.
Retirement compensation is based on the wage, so that, too, has to be recalculated for the firefighters who retired after 2017, he said.
"If that's wrong (the pay rates,) your retirement rate is wrong," Auvil said.
From 30 to 40 firefighters are affected by the suit, he said.
The case was filed in 2018. Plaintiffs named were Wayne White, Michael Wood, Joshua Gandee and others similarly situated and the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 91.
Mayor Tom Joyce had no comment and said he needs to meet with the city attorneys to discuss the ruling.
"I just got it this afternoon," he said. "I need to read it."
Jess Mancini can be reached at jmancini@newsandsentinel.com.