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 The standoff arose from a decades-old dispute over back wages that
went unaddressed by the city through several mayoral
administrations. The local firefighters union recently asked a court
to hold the city in contempt for not paying the judgment.
Civil District Court Judge Kern Reese last week granted the union's
request and said he would order Landrieu to be confined to his home
during weekends if the case was not resolved by the end of business
on Friday.
Landrieu initially said he would rather accept weekend house arrest
than agree to a deal he considers devastating to the cash-strapped
city.
The city on Friday morning appealed Reese's rulings to both a state
appellate court and the state Supreme Court. The appellate court
denied the requests but the Supreme Court issued its stay just
minutes before the house arrest deadline.
Firefighters union President Nick Felton said the ruling does not
change the debt owed to the firefighters. "This is far from being
over," he told Reuters.
After the Supreme Court ruling, Landrieu briefly addressed
reporters, saying he had made several proposals to the firefighters,
including paying a portion of the wages owed upfront and the rest
over 10 to 30 years.
"I never imagined in my wildest dreams ... that I could lose my
freedom for doing my job and fighting hard to protect the taxpayers
of the city," he said.
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"I want to solve this problem, but the firefighters union has
rejected every reasonable plan," he said.
Under a 1980s judgment, the city owes firefighters $75 million in
back wages, plus $67 million in interest, due to delays in giving
firefighters raises required by state law.
New Orleans is under federal consent decrees that mandate costly
reforms to its prison and its police department, and it is
struggling to afford more police officers and make street repairs.
"The firefighters insist on cutting to the front of the line ahead
of everybody else," said New Orleans Chief Administrative Officer
Andy Kopplin.
Felton has called that unacceptable, though he noted that putting
the mayor under house arrest will not help.
(Editing by Lisa Lambert and Sandra Maler)
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