HUNTSVILLE, Alabama - More than 1,900 full-time Huntsville city employees would see a significant bump in longevity pay under a proposal going before the City Council this week.

The Huntsville Fire Fighters Association is asking the council to ramp up longevity pay over the next three years to bring Huntsville more in line similar-sized cities across the Southeast.

Fire Fighters Association President Stephen Jones said the current longevity pay plan - which provides an annual benefit of $60 to $570, depending on seniority - has been static since 1968.

"It's been 45 years," Jones said Monday. "We are behind other cities. It's past time to address it."

As things stand, only employees with five or more years of continuous, full-time service are eligible for the annual longevity benefit. Those with five to nine years of service get $60; 10-14 years of service, $120; 15-19 years of service, $210; 20-24 years of service, $300; 25-29 years of service, $390; 30-34 years of service, $480; and 35 years or more, $570.

Human Resources Director Byron Thomas said longevity pay costs the city about $280,000 annually.

The firefighters association would like longevity pay benefits to kick in following the first year of continuous service to the city - and at a much higher rate.

The group is suggesting $27 for every year of full-time employment beginning Oct. 1, increasing to $45 on Oct. 1, 2014, and to $63 on Oct. 1, 2015.

A Huntsville employee with 10 years of service would see his or her current $120 longevity benefit jump to $270 this fall, $450 the following year and $630 in October 2015. A 20-year worker who now gets a $300 longevity benefit would be paid $1,260 at the end of the proposed three-step increase.

The City Council could vote on the revised longevity plan at its Thursday meeting, which starts at 6 p.m. on the ground floor of City Hall, 308 Fountain Circle.

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Huntsville Fire Fighters Association seeks longevity pay hike for 1,900 full-time city workers