Penticton Western News, August 07, 2015

Page 1

NEWS PENTICTON WESTERN

www.pentictonwesternnews.com

3

news

VOL. 49 ISSUE 63

Second rally at city hall draws hundreds

10

August 12th

SE E INSI DE FOR DETAILS

FRIDAY, AUGUST 7, 2015

entertainment Country icon George

Canyon set for Peachfest

14

sports Water ramp allows mogul skiers Job info: Newspaper Sticky Note ad Project: Pirate Pak Day

- Pre Promo A Client: White Spot to learnTrim new tricks safely size: 2.5” x 2.5”

house of ideas

Colours: Proof #: Date: Sign-off:

Allison Prinsen: allison@meehan

CMYK 1 June 26, 2015 YES

CYAN

MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

lewis.com | 604-733-1514

NEWS PENTICTON WESTERN

HYPNOTIZING — Emily Jalava can’t believe her eyes while on stage at Okanagan Lake Park during the opening day of the Penticton Peach Festival. She was one of the audience volunteers for the always popular William James hypnotist show which runs throughout Peachfest. The free event runs until Sunday. For more photos see Page 12. A full photo gallery from the Penticton Peach Festival is available online at www. pentictonwesternews. com. Mark Brett/Western News

FIRE CONTRACT SMOULDERING Steve Kidd

Western News Staff

The long running contract dispute between the City of Penticton and its firefighters has been snuffed out, at least for a few months. Penticton’s firefighters have been without a contract since the last one ended in 2009. In the meantime negotiations went back and forth, until both sides agreed to go to binding arbitration in July 2014. The dispute was finally heard by an arbitrator in early June, according to Mayor Andrew Jakubeit, and a decision was returned in late July. “The agreement covers 2010 to 2015 and it expires in December,” said Jakubeit, who explained that the arbitrator

awarded the firefighters 1.5 per cent increases in January and June of the first two years, then 2.5 per cent each year after that. The pay increase is retroactive, and Jakubeit said the money will come out of the 2016 budget. “Obviously it will have an impact on our budget,” said Jakubeit, who declined to say what the final cost for the city will be. “I don’t want to speculate, but there are 34 (firefighters) with the inspectors, and most of them are in the $50,000 to $80,000 range. It is a larger number, that is for sure,” he said. The city’s finance department is still in the process of calculating the total cost. “It goes back a few years and we have two payroll systems, so they are still figuring out exactly what that total

Lifetime Care

Only Beltone offers the most comprehensive altercare program in the industry. With BelcareTM, enjoy the benefits of - free annual hearing evaluations, 2-year hearing loss change protection plan, warranty coverage, plus so much more!

number is,” he said. But the city and the firefighters will soon be back at the bargaining table, trying to hammer out a new contract. Jakubeit hopes with new people on the city’s side of the table — Fire Chief Wayne Williams is retiring later this year and Eric Sorenson has just taken over as chief administrative officer — negotiations will go smoother and not take six years. “Maybe with some fresh faces, we can find some common ground with the union and figure things out,” he said. “It’s got to be a deal that makes sense for both parties. It will start being addressed in early 2016.” Mike Richards, president of the International Association of Fire Fighters Penticton local, was unavailable for comment.

Why Beltone?

Experts In Hearing Care

For 75 years, our sole focus has been your better hearing that’s why we’re the most trusted name in hearing care*.

Convenience

Award Winning Technology

From top to bottom, our virtually invisible hearing aids are designed to give you the best in sound quality, comfort and Bluetooth® connectivity

For over 75 years,

Beltone has been the premier hearing care partner. People trust Beltone to give them exceptional service and the best hearing technology available.

Penticton

Summerland

www.beltone.ca 250-492-5255 250-494-8778

With over 1,500 locations nationwide, we’ll be there to help you wherever you live or travel.

Oliver Place Mall Osoyoos 250-498-4544 250-495-6535

*Among adults over 50. Benefits of hearing aids vary by type and degree of hearing loss, noise environment, accuracy of hearing evaluation and proper fit. Beltone Hearing Care Centres are independently owned and operated. © 2015 Beltone

Helping the world hear better since 1940


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.