Haverhill firefighters should not object to the use of GPS devices to track where firetrucks are at all times. There is no right or expectation of that kind of privacy on the job.

But, the union does have a worthy objection to that information being available to the public. There are some people who, knowing firetrucks are in one location, will feel freer to create mischief in another.

The GPS disagreement is just one more in a long string of clashes between union and management in the city's Fire Department. The devices were recently installed in the firetrucks in the wake of the Highway Department scandal, when longtime Highway Superintendent James Flaherty and his son, Kevin, were charged and convicted with using their positions for personal gain.

There have also been public complaints about local firetrucks being parked in parts of town for long periods of time.

But the union has filed a grievance against the city for what it claims is the "arbitrary use of the GPS in some vehicles" in some department vehicles, but not all of them.

The union is half right. The devices are in the trucks, but not in the chief's car or vehicles used by the deputies or inspectors. Why not put them in the cars also?

But Paul Weinburgh, president of the firefighters union, is off base when he says GPS devices should be used "for public safety, but not for discipline and to harass us. Talk about Big Brother. It's ridiculous."

No, it is not ridiculous. Using GPS both for public safety and for possible discipline is not harassment. Indeed, the devices will make it more likely that a firefighter will not be unfairly disciplined, or suspected of misconduct. If there is a report that a group of firefighters is using a truck for personal business, the GPS will help to show whether that complaint is credible or not.

It is not harassment for an employer to know where an employee is at all times while on the clock.

Weinburgh is right, however, when he objects to the public having access to the Web site that shows the location of all the firetrucks. While they are a small minority, some people would use that information to commit crimes. The city should not provide information that would help those people.

And there is no compelling public safety interest in giving the public that information. Management and dispatchers are the only ones who really need it.

Management should use every available tool to make firefighters more efficient and accountable. But it should also protect them from those who would use those tools for criminal purposes.