Jacksonville Beach, FL — The Volunteer Life Saving Corps is suing the City of Jacksonville Beach for ending its contract and locking volunteers out of the lifeguard station.
Action News Jax reported last week that the deal between the city and the VLSC ended because the U.S. Department of Labor found that the contract violated federal law.
The volunteers had worked on Sundays and holidays, while the guards employed by the city worked Monday through Saturday.
A 2021 law found that the relationship between the VLSC and the city’s paid lifeguards violated federal law due to city-employed guards volunteering their time.
[RELATED: Jacksonville Beach ends partnership with volunteer lifeguard organization]
On March 9, 2022, the city sent a nine-month notice to the VLSC about the end of the agreement, giving the city exclusive use of the lifeguard station and its equipment.
Traditionally, the station had been a shared space.
However, on April 5, before the nine months were up, Jacksonville Beach’s city manager, Mike Staffopoulos, sent a letter to the VLSC’s board of directors accusing VLSC members of “disruptive and unprofessional” behavior.
The letter stated, “On Sunday, April 3, 2022, approximately fifty VLSC members (comprised of current members, alumni, and members of its board of directors) nonetheless descended on the Station and purposefully engaged in behavior intended to disrupt and interfere with the work of City staff who were on-premises to perform the duties of their employment.”
The letter went on to say, “Indeed, not only was the VLSC’s action disruptive and unprofessional, at times the behavior rose to a level that caused city staff to feel extremely uncomfortable, intimidated, and harassed.”
As a result, the city ended its 90-year relationship with VLSC immediately.
[RELATED: Now hiring: Jacksonville Beach Ocean Rescue]
On April 7, Tim Saggau with the VLSC wrote back to Staffopoulos saying the volunteer lifeguards were just there for a graduation ceremony.
The letter said, “We reject your claim that we created a hostile work environment. It was a normal graduation ceremony. In addition to graduation ceremonies, each year we hold ocean marathon swims, memorial services for fallen members and lifeguard competitions. Those activities usually attract a larger crowd than were present on Sunday and have never impacted lifeguard services.”
Saggau told Action News Jax on April 11, “This is our beach. This is where we’ve been for 110 years, since 1912 and this is where we want to be.”
The lawsuit was filed yesterday.
The VLSC is asking the public to come to Monday’s City Council meeting in support of the volunteers.
The meeting starts at 6 p.m. at the Jacksonville Beach City Hall.
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