With the overwhelming approval of UPSEU’s Rockland County Highway members on the terms of a new contract, the battle for a successor agreement immediately begins, as the contract expires in five short months. In 2011, with the county’s fiscal issues at a forefront, and its eight bargaining units without contracts, the county advised all county unions that it would need to lay off employees unless it achieved significant givebacks. Among the givebacks was a freeze on step movement, no increases, no longevity movement to new levels, a nine day deferral of pay and a provision requiring a new employee to pay 15% of the health plan for the duration of their employment instead of the 15 year cap in each county contract.
UPSEU stood strong, and was joined by five of the other unions in rejecting the county’s position. The CSEA and one other union agreed to the terms after being “guaranteed” there would be no layoffs in the units. UPSEU, which was slated for 10% staff reduction, went before the legislature and fought the cuts. Our efforts proved successful, and not a single UPSEU member was laid off. Most importantly we didn’t agree to the draconian cuts.
In developing the no layoff language, CSEA left an opening for the county to lay off employees. The county in fact went ahead and laid off a large number of CSEA unit members, despite “guaranteeing” they wouldn’t. So CSEA lost members and its members lost significant money due to the huge givebacks they agreed to.
Since that period, all current county unions have been bargaining, but no agreements were in place due to the county’s insistence that UPSEU and the five other unions agree to the same cuts CSEA and their members took for the periods 2011, 2012 and 2013. UPSEU was joined by others in refusing.
Fast forward to the current, and the CSEA and the same union that agreed to givebacks reached new agreements for the period through July 31, 2016. UPSEU went back to the table and made clear we would not take the three years of givebacks, and only wanted to move forward with raises and other improvements.
In the end we and a couple of the unions have settled after CSEA and RAM with the same new provisions in 2014, 2015 and 2016, but without the concessions.
UPSEU was able to secure five additional important improvements in local department issues that were extremely important to our members. Twelve UPSEU members were spared the new hire health change agreed by CSEA that they would have been included under, but given UPSEU’s refusal to go along, they are not.
“It was a long struggle, but in the end UPSEU and its membership took the right course not agreeing to the concessions which cost CSEA and RAM members over $10,000.00 in lost earnings. UPSEU members secured nearly $5,000.00 in gains with step and longevity movements during the same period,” stated UPSEU President Kevin E. Boyle, Jr.
In a significant representation issue, UPSEU, CSEA and RAM have the exact same language concerning the payment of double time after eight hours of OT in a week. The county administration in 2014, after a few significant storms in an effort to reduce double time costs, eliminated the payout relying on their interpretation of the contract. UPSEU took immediate action to grieve the matter, and ultimately went to arbitration and won, providing our members back pay earnings due to the county’s contract violation.
The CSEA on the other hand did nothing. No grievances, no arbitrations, nothing. They advised their members that there was nothing that could be done, and that the county could rely on the contract language to eliminate their member’s right to the double time. How wrong they were, and how fortunate our members are that we once again stood strong and fought for our members.
“It was a long battle, but one worth fighting,” stated UPSEU President Kevin Boyle. “We stood strong, and the unit negotiating team was unwavering in its commitment to not grant the egregious concessions granted by the CSEA and their patience and persistence paid off,” Boyle added.
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