[September 26, 2008]

Union won't back paramedic in suspension appeal Declines to support firefighter who also took sick day for Buffett show

(Gloucester Daily Times, Mass. Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Sep. 26--The city firefighters' union has decided against supporting the appeal by one of their own -- emergency medical technician-paramedic Jonathan Sanger -- of a two-week suspension for not having the proper recertification for ambulance work.

Of the department's 73 firefighters, about 30 met Wednesday night to discuss the decision of a Civil Service hearing officer, personnel director David Bain Jr., to suspend Sanger, according to fire Capt. Barry Aptt, the union president.

Aptt told the Times the union members had decided unanimously not to give financial and peer support to Sanger in fighting his suspension, a step Sanger said he was prepared take.

"I'm going to appeal," he said in an interview yesterday.

Sanger also denied any substantive violation of the requirement that he have a valid recertification, and said that he had taken the recertification course but that the paperwork had been misplaced, erroneously creating the impression that he was not recertified and prompting the action against him by the city.

"I was never working without a certificate on an ambulance," Sanger said. "I never lost my paramedic ticket."

He based that claim on a retroactive recertification granted to him by the Office of Emergency Medical Services.

In yesterday's phone interview, Sanger argued the state emergency medical services office did so after discovering the lagging paperwork. He told the Times he had been qualified at all times even though his paperwork had been delayed, giving the impression that he had been working as an emergency medical technician between April and June without proper certification.

In his decision to suspend Sanger, Bain deals with the claim that the emergency medical technician had been victimized by the inadvertent side-tracking of the paperwork proving he had taken the necessary recertification course.

"The defendant argues that, because OEMS ultimately recertified him and made the recertification retroactive that he should be held blameless in this matter," Bain wrote. "The fact that OEMS, the certification agency, chose for reasons known to itself to recertify does not excuse the defendant from his failure to follow the requirements of the statutes, regulations and rules."

In his ruling, Bain acknowledged at least some of the facts introduced by Sanger in his defense.

"There was also evidence that an intervening cause," he wrote, "mishandling by the Post Office, was responsible for the recertification failure."

A copy of Bain's Sept. 17 written decision was provided to the Times anonymously.

In the same way, the Times was provided a copy of the Aug. 19 notice of the charges against Sanger that was signed by Mayor Carolyn Kirk. Yesterday's story about the suspension reported incorrectly that the letter was provided to the Times by the "mayor's office." It was not.

Aptt described the union members at the Wednesday night meeting as not wishing to give the impression of encouraging or rationalizing irresponsible behavior, and instead were hoping the suspension would convince Sanger to become more responsible.

"I have no idea what's going on with the union," Sanger said yesterday,

Sander Schultz, the Fire Department's emergency medical service coordinator, did not attend the Wednesday night union meeting. He said it was "not unheard of" for the union to not back one of its members in a disciplinary matter," but it's not common," Schultz added.

In his ruling, Bain noted Sanger's "history of disciplinary action," which includes a three-day suspension for "abuse of sick leave" on Sept. 2, 2007 -- calling in sick to attend a Jimmy Buffett concert. The original penalty, a five-day suspension, was reduced to three on Sanger's appeal.

Sanger said he had a doctor's note asserting that he was injured and could not work on the day he went to the concert.

The recertification process involves a 48-hour course and 25 hours of continuing education to refresh skills which include cardiac and breathing interventions and the use of medication.

The emergency medical technician certification brings with it a $6,600 a year stipend on top of a firefighter's $44,526 base pay.

Richard Gaines can be reached at rgaines@gloucestertimes.com

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