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REDLANDS, CA – The Redlands Fire Department has agreed to take unpaid furlough time, but City Manager N. Enrique Martinez said it won't be enough.

The Redlands Professional Firefighters Association inked a deal with the city Wednesday to 90 total hours of furlough time - equal to a $214,313 cost savings to the general fund.

Sixty of the hours would be furlough time - days off without pay. But firefighters cannot take straight furloughs without violating constant manning agreements - deals the Fire Department has with the city ensure a minimum number of firefighters on duty at the same time. To rectify the problem, the association agreed to relinquish the $214,313 and in return, they would be able to take the time off any time before the end of 2010 fiscal year.

The additional 30 hours were forfeited by way of overtime that would normally be spent by the department to cover for the firefighters who took days off to satisfy the furlough agreement.

"Redlands firefighters are committed to serving their community," said Terry Welsh, fire captain and president of the RPFA. "We all understand what kind of economic problems the city is facing and we wanted to help."

"It's a good start," Martinez said. "But we're going to need more."

The RPFA's proposal came in response to Martinez's request of the Fire Department to trim $237,000 from its budget to help the city bridge a $2.7 million gap by the end of the fiscal year on June 30. The $237,000 request was based on a full pay period for all RPFA members.

When the RPFA's agreement came in at $214,313, Martinez said about $22,000 would have to be cut elsewhere in the department.

"I'm happy, but I needed the $237,000," Martinez said. "The Fire Department is going to have to find the remainder and we will continue to look at the budget situation and we will go from there. Revenues are going down, not up."

City spokesman Carl Baker said it is the Fire Department - not the RPFA - that will have to find places to cut the extra $22,000.

City Finance Director and Treasurer Tina Kundig said Martinez's request of $237,000 accurately represented a full pay period for RPFA members, which was what Martinez wanted trimmed from the General Fund.

"When we went into the negotiations, $237,000 was not a true representation of a single pay period," said Damion Pelonis, Redlands firefighter/paramedic and treasurer for the RPFA.

The figure did not reflect an early retirement taken by the city's fire marshal and the retirements of other Fire Department employees at the top of the union pay scale, who were then replaced by new firefighters at the bottom of the pay scale, Pelonis said.

With the RPFA's agreement with the city, all of the city's employee association - civilian and sworn - have agreed to unpaid furlough time.