Anniversary of Strike in 73

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ta176

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May 28, 2020
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Nov. 6, 1973, 47 years ago Firemen went out on strike for the first time ever. I remember calling all surrounding companies before 9 AM to make sure that everybody was going out. Fortunately the majority went out and O'Hagen was dumbfounded and couldn't believe it.
 
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We were outside the firehouse and the Brooklyn Trustee stopped by. He said that it looked like it would be a long one and that the members assigned the 6x9 tour go home for rest and report at 6PM for strike duty. I was laying down and my wife came into the room to tell me that the strike was over and to be ready for duty at 6PM. I personally felt that we got screwed by RV, the union president. The younger men didn't have so much to lose, but after that day, I was always grateful to the senior men on the job at the time who had anywhere from 20 to 35 years of their lives invested but went along with the younger members.
 
I was still a Proby working the night before the strike. We ( L131) responded to a 4 alarm fire that night and were told to work any fire that came in before the strike. Some time after 0900 we were told to take up. As we headed back to Red Hook we stopped at E214 to drop off there hose we were using to supply the bucket. Now we had a spare rig with no company number on it and I’m hanging off the side with a Proby front piece. Needless to say the brothers thought we were working the strike! It took about a minute, a long minute, to straighten things out.
When we finally returned to quarters we had to be asked by the Chief if we were striking and the book, housewatch journal, was recorded. As a Proby I was a little nervous to say the least. The union gave no guidance as to what to do about probies.
Sure enough I get a Telegram shortly after, yes they used Western Union, telling me to report to FD Headqurters with my Badge and Book of Rules. Myself and 50 Probies were being fired! At headquarters we were given a lecture by Gus Beekman about dishonoring our oath of office etc and told to go to lunch and be back after 1:00 for paperwork. Naturally we headed for the closest bar where we tried contacting somebody in the Union. When we returned we were told ‘all is forgiven’, the Union agreed in contract never to strike again. Nobody in the Union had contacted us at this point. So we went back to the bar and bitched over the whole situation.
Considering the layoffs followed the strike. I felt this a huge waste of time. Later it was discovered that the strike vote was not in favor of striking. (I guess the voting process is still in question 47 yrs later.)
I consider this the first time I was let go by the FDNY, the second was the ‘ layoffs’ the next year and finally when they put me out 29 yrs later.
 
Back in the day Firefighters were treated like second class citizens. Every contract we had the City just dragged their feet. We were at our busiest with arson, vacant building fires and 10-92's. Unfortunately 911 put FDNY on the map and they truly learned how far we go out of our way to do our job. Vinzinni had his back against the wall, O'Hagan didn't think we would strike, so he felt confident it wouldn't come off. I think Dick thought the City would make a last ditch effort to negotiate but we all know they never tried. So as a last resort most of the job went on strike.
 
Firemen were taken for granted and had few options for labor negotiations. The firefighter strikes in the early 1970s in several cities were unpopular but probably helped improve much better bargaining processes for civil employees. As I remember, the UFO did not vote to strike but had restrictions on what officers could and could not do during the strike. They were required to work and manned apparatus - but could only perform life-saving duties. No firefighter duties, like stretching hoselines. But they were allowed to respond on apparatus, search, evacuate. There was a BC assigned to each firehouse who were also sympathetic to the situation.

There was a 3rd alarm during the strike in Coney Island in a vacant building on Surf Avenue. The strike ended in the afternoon. At about 9:00 PM, Box 3501 came in for a Sea Gate pulled box at the end of Surf Avenue. It turned out to be a crowded illegal rooming house fire - heavy fire on arrival - a 5th alarm. Very fortunate for the many rescued by L 166 and L 161 that the strike had ended.
 
I too remember watching the news of the FDNY going out on strike.

That had NEVER happened before. Generally most people knew that the members of the FDNY were the busiest in the country. I remember my father, a firefighter in Bridgeport, Ct., saying to me; "if it is necessary to strike in a busy place like New York, it could certainly happen here". Nobody knew what to expect. It was a First of it's kind.

But as "mack" says, because of that strike within the FDNY, other fire depts benefitted in being recognized as bargaining units as well.

As I remember though, a little later, the Yonkers Fire Dept members had to go on strike because there seemed to be no good faith negotiations between the city and it's firefighters.

The firefighters of the FDNY and Yonkers FD during that time, paved the way to making the firefighters job classified as a "professional". Something that "ta176" talks about here as well.

Firefighters would now be recognized as "Professionals", being rightfully compensated for the dangers they face and the skills required to be a Firefighter.
 
Was working 6x9 night before strike. Received phone call from division to call all off duty members to report for duty 9AM tour next morning. E82/L31 majority of members actually voted not to strike. I myself didn't believe that the strike would happen. All but one or two members of 82/31 were in the kitchen at 0900. At 0900 the strike was on. About half of the members walked out of qtrs to picket the house. The remaining members then said "we can't let half the guys put their jobs on the line for the rest of us." With that the remaing members walked out. The dispatchers did a voice alarm roll-call of the Bx houses asking who was in service, not single company if I remember right. Because of the 82 book a T V crew came to qtrs and began interviewing members on the stike line. Dennis Smith showed up and gave an interview. Around 1100 a engine from the division of training showed up manned by probies. The members wouldn't alow the engine to back into qtrs. That prompted a number of police officers from the 41st Pct. to show up with the Captain in command. It was agreed that for safety sake the proby engine would be allowed to respond from outside of qtrs. The Captain told me that if any of the striking members hindered any response by the proby engine they will be arrested. The chief in charge of our house ordered myself and the other officers to drive and respond with our apparatus. We refused based on safety as none of use, except one, was chauffeur trained. The proby engine responde to 3 or 4 boxes, no work. 82/31 missed about 11 other runs with no response, no work. The Bx those days would "wake" up around 2 or 3PM. Would get busier as the day went with the real jumping from about 1500 to 0200. Strike ended at 1300 hours. The guys were putting their gear on the rigs when a box came in, went to all-hands. That's how close it came to being a real Bx tragedy. Before I left qtrs there was 3 all-hand goild in the Bx.

No one was fired. All of us, the officers included because we refused to drive, were fined 2 days pay. I was ordered to give 6 names to the division for a penal transfer. I refused, was told I had 24 hours to do so. The unions then went to bat and reached a facesaving agreement that the names submitted would be to a company of their choice. Five of my guys stepped up, two were on the Lt's list and 3 had had enough of the work. I had to give one name myself. I had one real jackass in the company, so his name went in. The unions filed a suit and it was settled months later that the men lifted cound come back, if they wanted to. The 5 who stepped up said "no thanks." Guess who I got back.
 
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No one was fired. All of us, the officers included because we refused to drive, were fined 2 days pay. I was ordered to give 6 names to the division for a penal transfer. I refused, was told I had 24 hours to do so. The unions then went to bat and reached a facesaving agreement that the names submitted would be to a company of their choice. Five of my guys stepped up, two were on the Lt's list and 3 had had enough of the work. I had to give one name myself. I had one real jackass in the company, so his name went in. The unions filed a suit and it was settled months later that the men lifted cound come back, if they wanted to. The 5 who stepped up said "no thanks." Guess who I got back.
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THANK YOU to those who were a part of this STRIKE within the Busiest Fire Dept in the World.

What YOU GUYS DID played a HUGE Part in helping other firefighters throughout the country.

It took a lot of GUTS to Stand Up for What was Right.

If YOU hadn't done what you did, "Who knows where the job would be today".
 
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