MAY 2007

Want to Reduce Taxable Income on Your

Lump Sum Health Care Refund?

If you are interested in reducing your taxable income you can do a one-time deferral for the $756 payment through the Deferred Compensation Program. If you are currently enrolled with Deferred Compensation, you will need to complete a special deferral form and return it to the Human Resources Office no later than July 13, 2007. 

If you are not already a participant and would like to become one, you will need to sign a Participation Agreement form and a special deferral form.  You must submit your request forms to the Deferred Compensation Program before June 15, 2007. To accomplish this, you can visit the DCP website at www.drs.wa.gov  (click on Deferred Compensation on the right of the screen under Quick Clicks) or you may contact the DCP Information Line at 1-888-327-5596, option 2 at the main menu (for TDD call 1-877-847-6041).

Customer Service Representatives are available Monday through Friday from 8 am to 5 pm.

Learn more about the settlement>>

- HISTORICAL ACCOUNT OF 2006 NEGOTIATIONS -

UPDATE - JULY 25, 2006

Coalition Reaches Agreement on Health Care;
Resolves Grievances

WPEA reached agreement today with the Governor’s team on health care and settled the grievances filed in General Government and all the Colleges over the July 1, 2006 employer contributions.  The agreement affects all WPEA members in General Government and the Colleges.  The offer from the Governor’s team is good for both parties. 

The agreement came after negotiations broke down on July 13.  The Governor’s office requested last Friday that the parties return to the table to see if agreement could be reached.  The grievances filed certainly encouraged the Governor’s team to consider further talks.  The Agreement includes:

• Commitment of the state to an 88% share of premium costs for them and 12% for the employee for both years of the contract.  This is a weighted percentage and depending on the health plan an employee chooses, their share could be more or less.  Additionally, there is a $20 million premium stabilization account set up to cover any unexpected inflation increases.  The employer’s share for 2008  is $717 and $752 in 2009.

• Commitment by the state to cover 100% of the costs of basic life insurance, basic long-term disability insurances and dental insurance.

• Represented employees will receive a lump sum payment of $756 on July 1, 2007.  This is the difference between the $744 employer amount negotiated in the current contract and the $681 that the state is actually paying for health care.  This amount is $63 per month currently going into to the HCA unrestricted reserves.  This amount will work to mitigate any increases that may go into effect in January 1, 2007.  The Public Employee’s Benefit Board meets tomorrow and is expected to adopt the health care plans for 2007. 

• The 12-month raise of 1.6% that took effect on July 1, 2006 will now become part of the employee’s base pay.  It will not go away on June 30, 2007.  This becomes the floor from which we will bargain salary adjustments for the 2007-2009 Master Agreements. 

Today’s agreement alleviates any premium increases that the PEBB may adopt with the July 1, 2007 lump sum payments  - as such, it is a rebate for the January through July 2007 increases. 

This agreement sets the stage for negotiations on compensation to begin soon.  The guarantee of the 1.6% being included in base pay is an added bonus in negotiations.  

UPDATE - JULY 21, 2006

The Coalition of State Employee Unions, who walked out of health care bargaining on July 13 (see below) were requested to return to the table by the Governor's Office. The Governor has acknowledged the pressure put on by the Coalition through the joint grievance filed on behalf of all represented state employees.

The Governor has requested the Coalition and the Labor Relations Office (LRO) return to health care bargaining on Tuesday, July 26. She believes that it is important to resolve both the issues in the grievance and reach agreement on the health care benefit amount to assure that all the other negotiations proceed effectively.

NOTE: WPEA's General Government contract bargaining is put on hold Tuesday so that WPEA can participate in the Coalition Health Care negotiations.

UPDATE - JULY 13, 2006

Contract negotiations over your health benefits broke down late Thursday (7/13) afternoon after it became clear the governor's team was not interested in addressing rank-and-file workers' concerns over escalating health costs.

Talks ended abruptly after management presented a counterproposal that would double employees' health insurance premium costs and reduce the state's costs despite a surplus apparently caused by the state not living up to the amount negotiated two years ago (see below).

The Coalition of State Employee Unions earlier Thursday proposed a realistic package calling for employees to pay a fair share for health premiums. The difference was a formula that would have given employees security in the percentage of total premiums they pay.

The union package also would have mandated that leftover funds would go to reducing employee health costs. And it would have prevented cost shifting to employees through higher point-of-service charges. The Coalition proposal incorporated a clause inspired by the governor's pre-bargaining call for collaboration; but her negotiators at the table rejected a proposed collaborative process where all sides would work for long-term solutions to escalating health costs.

Playing a big part in the break down in talks was the amount negotiated two years ago that the state is supposed to be paying now into employees' health benefits (see below).

TELL THE GOVERNOR THIS IS WRONG!!!

Bargain fair health insurance with no takeaways!
Doubling our premiums while cutting employer costs doesn't cut it!

Failure to live up to the current negotiated amount and proposing a package for 2007-2009 that reduces the employer's share while doubling employee premiums is a major concern for all the unions in the coalition.

The Coalition of State Employee Unions, representing 60,000 rank-and-file workers, will file a group grievance over the state's failure to abide by the health care contract language negotiated in 2004.

  Health Care Settlement Major Benefit

  Coalition Files Grievance Against State!!

  Overview of General Gov't. Negotiations

  Overview of Higher Ed Negotiations

  Overview of YVCC Negotiations