Philadelphia Court Backs City Hall in Dispute Over Rescinded Fire Promotions
By Mike Dunn
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A Philadelphia judge has ruled in favor of the Nutter administration and against the firefighters' union in a case involving 14 firefighters whose earlier promotions were being rescinded (see previous story).
The fourteen firefighters were promoted this past spring, under an order from Common Pleas Court judge Leon Tucker, but last week a Commonwealth court tossed out that ruling and ordered Tucker to dismiss the case.
That prompted the firefighters' union this week to go back to Tucker, asking the judge to stop the fire commissioner from rescinding the court-ordered promotions.
But Tucker has now dismissed the case, as the higher court told him to do. He also noted that the Nutter administration had warned the 14 firefighters that the promotions could be rescinded if the union lost in court, and that the 14 had failed in varying degrees to take a later exam that could have made them eligible for later promotions.
A spokesman for the mayor could not say when the fourteen will see their promotions rescinded. A spokesman for the union, Firefighters Local 22, said the union is disappointed and will immediately ask the higher court to vacate its decision.
Ultimately, the union has the option to appeal to the state Supreme Court.
