Judge orders city to increase aid for firefighters healthcare fund

As the Nutter administration and firefighters union get ready to duke it out in Commonwealth Court, a Philadelphia judge has ordered the city to make a lumpsum payment of $6.7 million to the union's healthcare fund, as well as increase its monthly contribution to the fund.

The firefighters, like the city's non-uniformed blue- and white-collar unions, have been working without a contract since 2009. The administration has continually appealed decisions favorable to the union, arguing that the city cannot afford contracts without substantial savings in healthcare and pension costs.

The Commonwealth Court case begins Sept. 11 in Harrisburg.