OCFA Negotiations Update: Dec. 8, 2022

Dear OCEA member,

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SOLIDARITY as we continue to fight for fairness at the bargaining table with OCFA’s JPA Board of Directors. We know this fight has been long and difficult, but it’s because of you and your fellow co-workers that we were able to build a campaign in 2022 that we believe sets us up for success in 2023.

In May, many of you started attending our joint rallies with Firefighters Local 3631 where we embarked on a campaign to let the public know about the JPA Board’s failure to care for the public safety personnel who care for the communities they represent. We took our message to the Board during its public meetings and both the residents of Orange County and local media took notice.

“Is Orange County’s Fire Authority on Fire?” the Voice of OC asked in an article examining the problems plaguing the culture of OCFA and the Board that runs it. Throughout the summer and fall we took our message to the city councils of the JPA Board, to let their fellow council members and residents know that their representatives were putting their community at risk with the failure to act. 

Most importantly, OCEA members mobilized when it mattered most—during the November 2022 election season—walking neighborhoods and making calls to get pro-worker candidates elected to office. In all, over 30 of OCEA’s endorsed candidates won their elections. Some of those candidates were elected to JPA Board city councils, setting the stage for a reshuffling of the JPA Board in January.

STAY TUNED. Once the new Board has been installed, we’ll be calling on you again to stand with us for our next action.

In Solidarity,

OCEA

Publication Date: December 8, 2022