ANAHEIM

An arbitrator will begin listening to representatives from the firefighters and city Tuesday, in a process aimed at ending a long-standing contract dispute between the two.

Because of the dispute, Anaheim firefighters have worked without an official contract for more than three years. City spokesman Brett Colson said the firefighters and city are about $1.5 million away from agreement. But in a process made possible by voters’ approval last year of an amendment to the city’s charter, decisions made by the arbitrator will be legally binding for both sides.