Woodstock, Illinois - The Woodstock Career Firefighters, Local 4813 of the International Association of Firefighters, formally announced its support of the fire referendum being sought by the Woodstock Fire/Rescue District. The Woodstock Fire/Rescue District has seen incredible growth in call volume over the years with disproportionately small increases in operating revenue. These challenges, coupled with dwindling numbers of part-time firefighters available in the region, required the collective efforts of the District and Local 4813 to identify service-focused solutions that continue to provide protection to the community. When asked about ways the union has helped uphold service to the community, Scott Wessel, President of Local 4813, said, “I am extremely proud of our membership. On multiple occasions, members voluntarily surrendered benefits, including two years of wage increases, in order to preserve service to the community. The great recession ended 10 years ago, yet our members are still feeling the effects.” Full-time positions have remained unfilled by the district and administrative positions have been eliminated. As a result, administrative tasks have fallen onto the shoulders of rank-and-file members, drastically increasing workloads on a membership already spread thin by the increase in call volume. “We are contracted for 52 hours per week. I guarantee that many of our members put in far more time than that, and often without additional compensation,” said Wessel.

Speaking about the District’s referendum in April of 2019, Wessel said, “Although nobody is proud to ask taxpayers for more money, especially in Illinois, we recognize that there is little the District can do to provide the service levels needed and deserved by Woodstock and the surrounding areas. We cover 90 square miles and respond to more than 5,000 calls, with as few as 12 people working per day. There are some serious deficits that need to be addressed.”

Questions regarding this release can be directed to President Scott Wessel at president@iafflocal4813.org