Charlotte City Council has approved a 10% pay raise for firefighters, bringing their wages in line with police officers. The raise will add more than $4.4 million to the original budget.
Charlotte Fire Chief Reginald Johnson said he is grateful for the decision, noting that pay parity with police has been a top priority for the department.
“Pay parity with police is our number one priority, and I’m very thankful to City Council for their vote to keep us with pay parity with police,” Johnson said.
The city’s original budget proposal included a 7% wage increase for firefighters, lower than the 10% increase planned for police officers.
City Council members said the initial discrepancy was due to a greater need to recruit police officers, as vacancy rates are higher in the police department than in the fire department.
Chief Reginald said equalizing the pay raises reflects the importance of all branches of public safety.
"The fire department is right there with the police and emergency medical services," Reginald said. "There is no public safety conversation without the fire department."
