 Proposal to snuff out policy. The Boca Raton firefighters' union wants the city to butt out of firefighters' smoking habits. After 24 years of contract prohibitions against firefighters using tobacco — on or off the job — Boca Raton's fire union wants to change the contract so they can light up without consequences. Currently,firefighters who use tobacco can be fired. Union officials say they want to bring the firefighters' contract more in line with the requirements for firefighter certification under Florida law. State law requires that new firefighter hires be tobacco-free for at least a year before hiring, but the law is silent on what happens after they're hired. The Boca union's proposed change that would affect 186 unionized firefighters is among the outstanding issues that led the city last week to declare an impasse in its negotiations with Boca Raton's public safety unions. John Luca, Boca's current fire union president and one of the contract negotiators, referred questions about the current... |
