Today the New Orleans fire fighters union and the city will be in court over the fire department sometimes calling on fire fighters to take on duties they haven't been trained for.
The fire department doesn't have enough people who have been trained on how to operate pumper trucks, or ladder trucks. So when there aren't any operators on duty, they would normally pay overtime to bring the qualified personnel in.
Fire fighters association president Aaron Mischler says because of the limits on overtime pay, "we're being ordered to do it with no compensation, so the union stepped in."
New Orleans Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Michael Harrison says they are working on training more people up, but it takes time.
"We have an existing list, we just have to grow that list a little more," said Harrison.
But the union says the fire department cannot threaten discipline for fire fighters who refuse work above their pay grade, and that is part of what's getting hashed out now in court.
