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CONTRACT UPDATE April 30, 2004
1. The State continues to demand that PEF make concessions in health insurance that neither CSEA nor UUP had to make. Where CSEA members have a single increase in their co-pays, they are insisting that we increase our amounts twice during the term of the Contract. UUP did agree to this "double bump" but the tradeoff was offset by gains in other areas of the contract. The State insists that PEF, too, accept the double-bump but refuses to discuss any aspect of our contract aside from health insurance.
2. The other well-discussed issue relates to the supposed establishment of a network of participating hospitals under the Empire Plan. The State asserts that CSEA and UUP have accepted this change but cannot provide any documentation to support their claim (the express language of both Agreements does not indicate participation in a hospital network) nor will they tell us the terms that either union supposedly accepted. The network may not be as onerous as people might think, but why should PEF members using non-par hospitals be subject to hundreds of dollars in annual co-pays when other members of the Empire Plan are not, especially if we pay the same bi-weekly premium?
3. PEF is not insisting that the health insurance plan remain "as it is" now. In fact, we have told the State that we will accept the same benefit changes in health insurance that was agreed to by CSEA and UUP. PEF is not holding out for benefit enhancements for PEF members that the State did not offer CSEA and UUP. There will be PEF specific enhancements in health insurance just as there were gains for CSEA and UUP that don't really apply to PEF members' benefits.
4. The State, to this point, has not offered PEF the same enhancements they have already provided to CSEA and UUP. The State has maintained its position that health insurance must be resolved before they will discuss any other term of the agreement. However, as counterproductive as this approach might be, we have struggled to meet the State's need in this area. We have indicated to the State that PEF can meet their needs in this area--including offering proposals to address their needs on co-pays and the hospital network--but the State has refused. More important, they have not modified their position that we accept raises that are far less than they have offered 100,000 other State employees and they continue to press for additional concessions outside of the health insurance area (the other unions made none).
The Contract Team is committed to remaining at the table until we have achieved the best possible contract for PEF members. Certainly the agreements with CSEA and UUP and the pattern they establish will have great impact on the terms of our eventual agreement. However, as long as the State continues its insistence that PEF members make greater concessions for fewer enhancements, we are prepared to take the time and actions necessary to achieve a fair deal rather than simply capitulate to a poor one. Our members deserve no less.
To receive the most current information on the negotiations you can sign up for our e-mail updates at http://www.unionvoice.org/pef/join.html. If you prefer not to receive e mails but rather want to read the information at your leisure you can do so by visiting our website at http://www.pef.org/pst2003/index.htm. At this site you will find the most recent information, past updates (over 60 of them) and FAQ's on important matters like the Network and the proposed Rx program.