12/22/2003

TABLE TALK
There has been no State response to PEF’s comprehensive proposal of December 4.

WHY A GEOGRAPHIC COLA?
From an e mail addressed to PEFonline@pef.org

“Just to let you know that all members don't agree with this idea.  While it sounds good on the surface and would benefit those in those regions, it would be at the expense of those of us who aren't.  As I understand the negotiation process, it's a game of give and take.  I think all we can take should be equally divided among all members.  I'm not willing to give part of my take to another region.”

PEFonline responds:
“Thank you for your comments regarding the COLA.
 
When we negotiate for a membership as diverse as ours, very often the exercise is one of balancing different needs. The truth of the matter is that the contracts have long provided some economic adjustment for employees working in the downstate area where the cost of living is higher than in most other places in the country (not to mention the State). The COLA approach was our attempt to provide a more equitable adjustment for these and other people who work in high cost areas. (PEF, for example, also represents workers in Chicago, IL as well as overseas). More importantly, several of the large upstate metropolitan areas are very close to the national average, and under our proposal, should the cost of living UPSTATE exceed the national average, wages for those employees would be adjusted as well.

As I said, our job is to balance competing interests. Sick Leave Parity, Dental improvements, Pension reform—none of these major issues impacted all of our members in the same way. Still, we made each of them a priority in the past or in this round of bargaining. In this case, the delegates to the PEF Convention also passed a resolution (nearly unanimously, I might add) instructing the negotiating team to make the COLA proposal a top priority in this round of bargaining.”

SPEAKING OF COLA - Fax the Governor today!
Empower your negotiators! 1500 of your colleagues have already taken action! There are thousands more who are impacted everyday! A permanent wage COLA is necessary for those who work in high cost areas of the State to raise their quality of life to standards in other parts of the State and Country. Send a fax to Governor Pataki today and ask your friends and coworkers to do the same. Let the Governor know how important this issue is to you and your family!

http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/wage_cola_for_pef