By Richard C. Dujardin
NORTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. -- The town's firefighters appear to have lost their court fight to keep the town from imposing a work schedule that requires them to work 24-hour shifts followed by 48 hours off.
In a ruling issued Friday, the state Supreme Court granted the town's request for a permanent stay to an order originally issued in Superior Court Judge by Brian P. Stern, saying the the town was likely to prevail in a full appeal.
Stern had ruled in December that the town could not unilaterally require its unionized firefighters to work 24-hour shifts, but the justices said they thought he erred, and said they did not think the firefighters or public were harmed by the schedule changes.