Atlanta mayor signs new contract with firefighter union after 1-year delay
A week after Atlanta’s firefighters elected a new union president, Mayor Andre Dickens signed a year-old collective bargaining agreement that was the subject of a March lawsuit against the city.
In its breach of contract litigation, the local fire union said its leaders were blindsided when they discovered the mayor never signed an agreement they had been operating under for months.
The union celebrated in April 2025 when the Atlanta City Council passed a resolution ratifying the first-of-its-kind CBA that allowed for a 14-day pay cycle for firefighters, regularly scheduled meetings with department leadership to discuss labor concerns and a formal grievance process.
Nate Bailey, former president of the Atlanta Professional Fire Fighters Local 134, said the city had operated under those terms for six months — until October, when he said the union was informed by department leadership that their contract was never signed and, therefore, not in effect.
“For years, we’ve had struggles with the city keeping their word,” Bailey said. “This is the very first collective bargaining agreement in the city’s history, and now we’re having to file suit because the city won’t honor their part.”
Dickens’ administration said the mayor never signed the agreement because the last election for union president was “inappropriately conducted.”
The administration said there were questions surrounding the legitimacy of that election and calls from both members of Local 134 and union’s national leadership to “rerun it.”
Capt. Alvin Rashad was elected the new union president last week, receiving 83% of the vote. The 19-year department veteran previously served as Local 134’s vice president.
In a letter to the city’s firefighters after last week’s election, the mayor signaled he would sign the agreement “now that the election for the Professional Fire Union president has been properly readministered.”
“Let me be clear: my support for Atlanta’s firefighters is absolute,” Dickens wrote. “We will continue to invest in your safety, your equipment, your compensation, and your long-term success — because protecting those who protect us is not optional, it is a responsibility I take seriously every single day.”
The collective bargaining agreement was signed Monday at the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center. Dickens called it “a historic moment” for the city and its fire department.
“Our administration has made historic investments in (fire department) personnel and infrastructure — including new fire stations, new fire engines, upgraded equipment, housing for recruits, pay raises and the opening of the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center,” Dickens said.
Rashad said morale within the department is “fair,” but he hopes he and other union leaders can work with the city to keep firefighter pay competitive with other large cities.
In recent years, Rashad said he’s seen experienced firefighters leave the department for surrounding jurisdictions that pay more.
Union leaders have said Atlanta’s firefighter compensation lags behind Charlotte and even some metro Atlanta departments that pay more while offering cheaper healthcare plans.
“We’re seeing some people leaving, applying to Roswell and other departments or going into the private sector,” Rashad told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution over the weekend. “I’m hoping that this is the first step and that we can work with the mayor and have a better relationship over the next three and a half years.”
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