NORWICH – In light of the city’s cash strapped 2016 tentative budget, city employees have settled agreements to forgo union contract raises for the coming year.

Negotiated contracts with the Norwich Police Benevolent Association, Firefighters Association, and CSEA for administrative support staff and the Department of Public Works were ratified by the Norwich Common Council on Wednesday. For most city employees, the agreement means they will not see a two percent bump in salary in 2016.

Having been heavily targeted for cuts early on in the budgeting process, including a possible reduction in personnel, the Fire Department made a number of concessions to save its head count. Those concessions include a reduction in holiday time from 110 hours to 55 hours, elimination of all personal time, removal of laundry service, and removal of the 2,928-hour cap that Fire Assistants can work in a calendar year. Department employees have also agreed to contribute 25 percent of health insurance premiums next year.

In return, city officials have expanded the residency requirement for Fire Assistants from a 10-mile radius to all of Chenango County, thus increasing the pool of potential Fire Assistant employees. More notable, the city agreed not to lay off fire personnel in 2016.