In a bitter contract dispute between the Fire Fighter’s Union and Mayor Nutter’s administration, after an arbitration panel first awarded a contract with pay raises to the firefighters in 2010, the city of Philadelphia appealed to Common Pleas Court to block the wage increase, arguing that the award did not comply with the law that created the Philadelphia Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority, the city’s financial overseer. Local 22 of the International Association of Fire Fighters argued that their much-deserved pay increase came after the firefighters had worked without a raise or contract since 2009.

In a December 12, 2012 Press Release made by Philadelphia City Controller Alan Butkovitz stated, “It’s disconcerting that Philadelphia’s Fire Fighters have been without a contract since 2009, especially when these men and women put their lives on the line every day to ensure that citizens and visitors are protected.”