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Top issues: expanding COLA, salary grade
parity, dental benefits
Meetings with members empower contract team
By DEBORAH A. MILES
When it comes to negotiating a new PS&T contract for the majority of PEF
members, there is a lot that happens behind the scenes.
Representatives from the contract team visit each PEF Region to tap into their
issues and concerns. And even though formal negotiations won’t begin until 2007,
the “town” meetings that took place across the state throughout August and
September have been valuable in helping the team prepare for the coming
negotiations.
“Meeting face-to-face with members and having the opportunity to listen to their
concerns helps the team plan its strategy,” said PEF Vice President and contract
team chair Lou Matrazzo. “Members provide specific examples the team needs when
advancing proposals at the contract table.”
The team also gets a lot of ammunition from members of PEF statewide
labor-management committees.
A dynamic partnership
“The L-M members are leaders of agencies and they are close to the issues,” said
Roger Scales, PEF director of labor relations. “They know first-hand the
high-level issues that are raised and rejected by managers. They are invaluable
to the bargaining team.”
For example, Scales said during the last round of negotiations the issue of
giving hazardous duty pay to state Department of Transportation members who work
in high-risk traffic areas was addressed and achieved.
“This success was a result of input from the labor-management committee to the
bargaining team,” Scales said.
“L-M chairs are able to educate their managers on issues, and when those
agencies agree a problem exists, we find mutual support at the bargaining
table,” he said. “That dynamic is a result of the partnership between L-M chairs
and the contract team.”
’07 hot issues
The one issue that affects all PS&T members is a raise in every year of the new
contract. “That’s our major goal,” Scales said. “It’s the only thing applicable
to all members.”
PEF President Ken Brynien said increasing the geographic pay differential for
those who live in high-cost areas such as New York City will be one of the top
five issues.
“This is a very important issue and other union leaders have agreed to make it a
priority in the 2007 contract negotiations,” Brynien said. “We want to see the
same purchasing power around the state.”
In addition to the cost-of-living-adjustment, Brynien and the contract team
identified expansion of salary grade parity (merit pay program) beyond salary
grade 18 and dental program improvements as top objectives in the round of
bargaining.
For up to the minute contract news, visit the PEF Web site at
www.pef.org and click on the 2007 contract
button. Members are also encouraged to register for the Active Involved Member
(AIM) online updates
Do you have a suggestion or comment to share with the contract team? There are
three ways to contact the team:
E-mail: PEFONLINE@PEF.org
Voice mail: 1-800-342-4306 ext.339
“Snail” mail: Contract Team, PEF Headquarters, 1168-70 Troy-Schenectady Road,
P.O. Box 12414, Albany, NY
12212-2414.
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