A few announcements for L1352:

Next union meeting is October 14th at station 31. Elections will be open for Vice President and Political Director nominations. Also, President will be open this cycle with President Freed stepping down at the end of the year.

October is Breast Cancer awareness month. Additional shirts have been ordered for those that do not have the navy breast cancer t-shirt. You can pick up your shirt at the union meeting and crews can wear the t-shirts from October 15-31. Reach out to Simpson if you need a shirt including your size, especially if you will not be able to make it to the union meeting.

Speaking of t-shirts, we will bring some of our older shirts to the union meeting for people to grab to wear off duty. Lots of different styles will be available first come, first served.

The Union Banquet is schedule for October 18th, 5pm at The Muckleshoot Casino. If you have not RSVP’d, please do so ASAP. Looking forward to a fun night with everyone.

Lastly, the negotiations team will have its first meeting with administration this Thursday, October 9th.

That’s all for now, see you October 14th at the Union Meeting and October 18th at the casino!

Brothers and Sisters,

I want to encourage each of you to make it a priority to attend our monthly union meeting tomorrow. This meeting is especially important as we will be discussing our upcoming negotiations for the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). Your presence and participation will help guide the direction of our negotiations team.

In-person attendance is always best—it allows for clearer communication and stronger discussion. We understand that those on duty in the stations cannot be present physically, so a priority of communication will be given to our working crews. If you’re joining by Zoom, your voice will still be heard, but please understand it can be more challenging to communicate effectively in that format.

Please come prepared to help set our priorities for the negotiations team. Be respectful, patient, and allow space for others to voice their opinions as we work together to represent the best interests of our membership.

Your input matters, and this is your chance to make it count.

In Solidarity,

Ryan Freed

President, IAFF Local 1352

Brothers and Sisters,

As we approach our next round of contract negotiations, I want to keep you informed and engaged in the process. Our union is strongest when every member has a voice, and right now we need to hear from you.

We’ve solicited feedback already, but so far we’ve received limited responses. These negotiations will directly impact your career, your pay, and your future in the fire service. Please don’t miss the chance to shape the priorities that your negotiations team brings to the table.

One example under consideration is the addition of an Engineer position, designated with a 5% increase to base wages. This wouldn’t apply to everyone at once, but every firefighter would have the opportunity to promote into the position as openings occur—just as with other promotions in the fire service. Remember, there are numerous ways to implement a program like this, and like any well-crafted plan, it will inevitably encounter challenges.

But this is only one option. If you don’t feel this is the right direction, then we need to know: What alternative do you believe would most benefit our membership? Whether it’s pay structure, specialty pay, scheduling, or another creative solution, your input will help us set the path forward. When you make a suggestion, please include how you believe it will impact the financial bargaining process (costs/savings and leverage at the table) and how it would improve or fit into our contract language—so we can evaluate and advance your idea effectively.

The negotiations team—your fellow members, including myself as your president—has one priority: to advocate for improvements that make a real difference in your lives. To do that effectively, we need your ideas, your concerns, and your direction.

Please take a few minutes to reply with your thoughts. No suggestion is too small, and every opinion matters. Direct responses to myself or the negotiations team (Connell, Lewis, O’Donnell, Friis, Hough) Let’s work together to make sure our contract reflects the value of the work we do every single day.

In solidarity,

Ryan Freed

President, Local 1352

Ryan Freed

President Local 1352

Valley Professional Firefighters

1951 R St SE Auburn, WA 98002

206-919-5867

Here are the current teams the Laidlaw is aware of for the Lionhardt Golf Tournament next month. If you see something that’s not correct or need to make a change, please contact Brother Laidlaw. Still time to add your team for an amazing day and supporting a great organization.

Gary Barker
Ryan Simpson
Jordan Gustafson
Dylan Nystul

Anthony Rodriguez
Cory Wallace
Jacob Howard
Alexander Hough

Mike Patterson
Jim Franklin
Cooper Franklin

Andrew Bergford
Andrew O’Donnell
Mike Homan
Meghan Loudon

Jay Skilton
Jared Brooke
Kyle Strange
Tim Robert’s

Tiffany Carlson
Emma Sheehy
Robbie Stevens

Danielle Palmer
JD
Papa Palmer
Brother in law

Darrel Normandy
Justin Erickson
Ryan Nauer
Heather Nauer
(Playing under Carpet One hole sponsorship)

First, your executive board would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to everyone for stepping up and sending Bill off the way he deserved. Everyone jumped in when needed for any and all tasks. Going to meetings, running errands, doing standbys so others could prepare, washing and prepping all the rigs, and of course showing up on Saturday looking sharp and honoring a great man. I know I speak for everyone when I say it was such an honor to participate and we’re so proud of everyone in our local.

Next, if you haven’t heard, the new Local 1352 coins are in! Feedback so far is they turned out awesome, but maybe people just are being nice. Every current member will receive a new coin and if you would like additional, you can order them on our website. My goal is to personally deliver to each one of you, so if you have not received one, its only because it’s been a busy few weeks. I will definitely track everyone down.

Tomorrow, we have our monthly Union meeting at station 31. As usual, it will start after the BOG meeting is over, around 6pm. I’ll send out a zoom link tomorrow afternoon, but come in person and get your coin. It’s contract negotiating season, expect some updates including one from the engineer committee. After the meeting, lets get some drinks and maybe tell a Bill Mack story or two.

Event wise, we moved Fill the boot to September and cancelled the chili cookoff.

That’s all for now. Be safe out there.