Tom Fields, WSCFF 5th District Representative
The 5th District remains busy. Most of our locals are prepping for the start of negotiations or are deep in the middle of them. Several are also engaged in mediation. We have seen the arrival of several new principal officers among the various executive boards. Members from the Fifth have been active and engaged in many WSCFF and IAFF events. These include the IAFF PEP in Boise, WSCFF Legislative Conference in Olympia, IAFF Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C., the new IAFF Strive for Excellence Summit in Las Vegas, and the IAFF-WSCFF Jointly Sponsored Educational Seminar in Wenatchee. WSCFF President Lawson, representatives from the WSCFF Executive Board, and either Ricky Walsh or Tim Hoover have met with all eight locals in the 5th District. Peer Support efforts continue across the 4th, 5th, and 6th Districts, with several joint training sessions and ongoing efforts to expand training. A large regional AFG was awarded that will provide IAFF Peer Support training to 120 union members from several locals in the 5th and 6th districts.