"CSEA Reaches Contract Settlement for 6,000 Court Employees Across New York"
CSEA - New York's Leading Union - has reached a tentative agreement with the New York State Office of Court Administration on a new contract covering more than 6,000 non-judicial employees in the state's Unified Court System.
"CSEA and the Unified Court System have reached a fair and responsible agreement that recognizes the value and importance of the court employees who make the system work every day," said CSEA President Danny Donohue. "These were challenging negotiations and I am extremely proud of the focus and commitment of the CSEA bargaining team."
The four-year agreement retroactive to April 1, 2007 includes salary increases in every year of the agreement, improved downstate and Mid-Hudson Valley location pay, enhancements in longevity bonuses for long-term employees, improved payments to the Employee Benefit Fund and Labor-Management programs and increased funding for body armor for security personnel. There were no significant changes to health insurance provisions.
Across-the-board cost of living adjustments are as follows:
* April 1 2007 - 3 percent or $950, whichever is greater (retroactive);
* April 1, 2008 - 3 percent or $975, whichever is greater (retroactive);
* April 1, 2009 - 3 percent or $1,000, whichever is greater; and
* April 1, 2010 - 4 percent or $1,025, whichever is greater.
CSEA also agreed to a salary increase deferral for employees earning more than $115,000 annually until a judicial pay raise is enacted. Employees at or above that level will have their salaries held harmless but will receive the contract provisions once the judicial pay raise issue is resolved. If it is not resolved by the end of the contract, the employees will receive all of the contract cost of living adjustments retroactively. This issue would affect about 500 individuals out of the bargaining unit's 6,000 members.
CSEA-represented court employees work in a range of non-judicial jobs, from court clerks to clerical and administrative staff to security officers in the court system in every part of New York.
Additional details about the agreement will be posted on the CSEA website www.csealocal1000.org shortly. The agreement will be presented to the CSEA rank and file members for review and ratification in the weeks ahead. It must also be approved by the state legislature and signed by the governor.
[Editor's note: Additional details will also be available here at the CSEA Judiciary web site, www.cseajudiciary.org]
CSEA and UCS have made a tentative agreement on a new contract for 2007-2011. The deal includes increases in compensation, location pay, and other benefits. More details will follow once final wording is agreed upon.
After abruptly breaking off contract negotiations with CSEA on April 16, the Unified Court System (UCS) has apparently had a change of heart. CSEA is pleased that UCS has agreed to keep negotiating sometime during the week of May 6. (Details are still being worked out.) We hope to make significant progress on the remaining issues on the bargaining table. We made considerable progress last time, which is why we were puzzled by UCS's walk-out. Now both sides have another opportunity to reach an agreement.
CSEA and Unified Court System management met April 15 in Albany for negotiations, after months of efforts by the union to force UCS to negotiate an agreement in good faith for CSEA-represented court employees.
Despite some progress, UCS continues to be unreasonable and declared impasse on CSEA on April 16 after only 15 hours of negotiations. That day, UCS shockingly told CSEA that unless we reached an agreement by the morning of April 17, UCS would declare impasse with PERB. CSEA is by far the largest of UCS's 11 bargaining units. CSEA finds it ironic that UCS, which stalled and avoided negotiations for a year, would demand an immediate agreement.
The good news is that UCS offered pay raises, location pay increases, longevity bonuses, child and elder care benefits, uniforms and equipment allowances, QtP funding and other areas.
Despite this progress, CSEA and UCS still disagreed on several issues. First, UCS management proposed insufficient funding for the benefits provided by the CSEA Employee Benefit Fund. The court system's plan also includes insufficient progress on providing body armor for court officers. Additionally, UCS wants to cap annual salaries at $115,000 until or unless judges get a pay raise.
CSEA will oppose the impasse declaration and ask PERB to order UCS back to the negotiating table. The stalling has gone on too long.
Due to behind-the-scenes efforts by CSEA, the Unified Court System appears ready to negotiate for real on a new contract for court employees. CSEA has added two April days for negotiations with UCS, in addition to dates already scheduled in May. We are hoping that we will make real progress towards a new contract, and we will keep our members updated.
If you have questions regarding these changes, please call the New York State Health Insurance Program (NYSHIP) at 1-877-7-NYSHIP or the CSEA Health Benefits Department at 1-800-286-5242.
Increments & Longevity Bonuses
UCS has confirmed that the 4/1/08 increments and longevity bonuses will, in fact, be paid to eligible members. Barring any unforeseen problems, it is anticipated that they will be paid in the 4/30/08 paycheck, based on our lag payroll system.
Childcare/Eldercare Reimbursement
Recently, one of our members inquired as to the Childcare/Eldercare Reimbursement program that has been available in the past. Please be advised that this program is not presently active in that there is no funding due to the expiration of our 2003-2007 contract. I would suggest to those who do utilize this program that they save their receipts in the event that there is any "backward reimbursement" once we do have a contract. Again, there is no guarantee there will be a reimbursement of any kind, but in the event that there may be, better to err on the side of caution and have receipts available.
EBF Legal Services Inquiry
Our Employee Benefit Fund Legal Services benefits describes on page 16 of the EBF booklet a reimbursement for "principal residence real estate closing." The benefit provides for up to $300 per calendar year per sale or purchase, with a $600 cap, once the proper documentation is submitted. There is no deadline for applications, but after inquiring of an EBF specialist, we have learned that members who submit proper documentation will be reimbursed up to one year following a principal residence real estate closing.
The EBF Brochure is available by going to our website, www.cseajudiciary.org, click on "Links & Locals," click on the CSEA Employee Benefit Fund link. Once on the EBF site, select Unified Court System. Other departments of CSEA have different negotiated benefits, so it is important that you click on the Unified Court System link located on the lower left-hand side of the EBF web site.
Judiciary Local 334 Vehicle IDs
Please be advised that our Local 334 vehicle IDs that have been distributed over the years do NOT entitle our members to special parking privileges or to park in restricted places. In one of the counties within our Local, complaints have been received that our members have parked at meters without paying and have displayed their Local 334 vehicle ID. You WILL be ticketed if you park illegally. Our IDs do not entitle members to any specific legal privileges; they only identify the vehicle as that of a CSEA-represented court system employee.
E-Mail Confidentiality
A reminder, UCS e-mail is NOT confidential. Every e-mail sent through Groupwise is subject to UCS review. If you feel you need to contact the Union about a confidential matter, please use my union e-mail, dlynskey334@yahoo.com, call the union telephone at 1-800-498-0334, or contact one of our other Local or Unit officers as listed on our web site.
FMLA
The Family and Medical Leave Act was amended in January of this year to include a new leave called "Servicemember Family Leave." The amendment, in substance, provides for the following: "An eligible employee who is the spouse, son, daughter, parent, or next of kin of a covered servicemember shall be entitled to a total of 26 workweeks of leave during a 12-month period to care for the servicemember." A more detailed description of the amendment is available. If you would like to receive the complete description, please e-mail me or call the union telephone at 1-800-498-0334 and leave your name and fax number.
Thank you to Bob Riley, CSEA Labor Relations Specialist, for passing along this information.
Contract Negotiations
Our next contract negotiations are scheduled for the first week in May. I will keep you posted as to any progress.
We have a number of Local 334 members who will be retiring effective the end of this year. Our best to you all -- enjoy yourselves!!
On behalf of the CSEA Judiciary Local 334 Executive Board, we wish everyone a very happy holiday season and a wonderful New Year!
Despite CSEA Executive Branch member's tentative contract agreement with New York State, our negotiations with the Unified Court System for a new contract remain stalled. UCS is finally ready to make our next bargaining session the last date for either side to make new proposals. We are attempting to have that next session sometime in January. We hope the Executive Branch agreement will ease the path for CSEA to reach an agreement. However, UCS seems determined to insist on givebacks and a cap on member salaries (the latter is tied to the lack of a pay raise for judges). It may be a long time before significant progress is made. Please check back periodically for further developments.
Local 334 Retirement Benefit
Your Local Executive Board has approved a $50 Retirement Benefit for our members, effective November 1st, 2007. Members must complete and submit the Local 334 Retirement Benefit application form, available from the Local. Further documentation may be required. A check will be mailed to the member's home address approximately 30 days after their effective retirement date.Inspector General Matters
Recently, there have been several inquiries regarding the Unified Court System's Inspector General's office. The following information will help explain your rights and responsibilities if contacted by the Inspector General's office.
If you are the target of an investigation by the IG, most often you will be contacted by your Local President. The IG will rarely directly contact the target of an investigation, but the IG may directly contact a member if they are simply a witness or have some minor involvement in the matter.
If you are a target, you are entitled to union representation, your Local President and/or Labor Relations Specialist (LRS), or you may hire private counsel. In the event you hire private counsel, you would be required to sign a waiver with regard to union representation.
If you are a target, you may request to record the investigatory proceeding, but if you are interviewed as a witness, you will not be allowed to record the proceeding and you are not entitled to representation. As a witness, you may refuse to answer the questions presented by the IG, but in that event you would, in all likelihood, face charges of insubordination. In other words, you must cooperate with the investigation or risk being brought up on charges yourself.
IG investigations are confidential. The investigator will make every effort to complete his investigation through Judge Plumadore's office and local management's office, without unnecessarily involving others.
Once the investigation has been completed, the IG composes a report of his findings, which is submitted to Judge Plumadore's office and the District Administrative Judge's office. Ultimately, Judge Plumadore's office makes a decision as to if/what action will be taken as a result of those findings.
At this time, there is no requirement that a target or witness be notified that the investigation has been completed.
If you have further questions regarding the Inspector General's office, please feel free to contact me.
CSEA/UCS Court Reporter Page Rate Committee
The CSEA Page Rate Committee last met with UCS on page rate negotiations in June of 2006. At the conclusion of that session, CSEA requested that UCS submit their final proposals for our review, following which we would consider sending that proposal out to our court reporter members for ratification. UCS agreed to send us their "final" proposal.After repeated requests for their proposal following the negotiation session, UCS finally replied that they were not going to send us a final proposal, rather that they were considering tying in court reporter page rate issues with the contract negotiations.
As a member of the both teams, Page Rate and Contract Negotiations, I can tell you that the Page Rate committee members have worked many years....yes, literally years attempting to come to an agreement on page rates. As a member of the contract negotiations team, I know that UCS at this time has not proffered a single proposal regarding court reporter page rates. At our last contract negotiation session, UCS did indicate that they have submitted 75% of their proposals. Possibly we will see a proposal regarding page rates as negotiations continue. I will keep you posted.
Contract Negotiations
While on the subject of contract negotiations, CSEA & UCS had tentatively scheduled the last week of November to continue contract negotiations, but that session will not occur. At this time, we do NOT have a date set to continue negotiations. You will be kept informed as soon as new date(s) are established.Your Union
Based on a some comments that have gotten back to me regarding CSEA representation of our Local, I thought it important to remind our membership of a few facts. If someone believes that our union "doesn't do much," they might reflect on the fact that most of us are working a 35-hour work week, typically have an hour for lunch, enjoy four weeks or more of vacation annually, 13 paid holidays, longevity bonuses, reimbursed co-pays, enjoy representation and contractual rights in disciplinaries, and have benefits far exceeding what most private sector employees receive. The State of New York would not simply offer these things to our members without CSEA fighting extremely hard to get and maintain each and every benefit. Over the years, quite a few of our new union members have commented to me what a vast improvement it is to work within the court system and how great it is to enjoy union representation, as compared to working in the private sector. Sometimes we need to look "outside the box" to realize and appreciate the great benefits and union rights we have garnered for our membership! I am very thankful for my CSEA affiliation and believe that the majority of our membership feel the same way.On that note, on behalf of CSEA Judiciary Local 334, we wish you a very Happy Thanksgiving!
CSEA & Executive Branch Tentative Contract Agreement
CSEA announced yesterday that a tentative contract agreement has been reached for Executive Branch employees. Details are available on the CSEA website, www.csealocal1000.org. Highlights include salary increases of 3% April 2007, 3% April 2008, 3% April 2009 and 4% April 2010; modest increase in co-pays for certain health benefits, as well as some enhancements in benefits. While this does not directly affect us as employees of the Unified Court System, as I have mentioned in previous Receiver notices the CSEA-UCS contract will follow closely with the Executive Branch salary increases and health insurance benefits.
The CSEA Judiciary negotiating team is tentatively scheduled to meet the last week of November. You will be notified of any progress in our CSEA-UCS contract negotiations.
Direct DepositFor those members who do NOT have direct deposit, please be aware that UCS paychecks are mailed using standard US Postal service to deliver checks to your court facility. Therefore, if/when there is a problem and paychecks do not arrive timely, there is no tracking capability, which may even further delay receipt of your paycheck.
Following problems recently in one of our counties, once again I strongly urge everyone who is capable to sign up for direct deposit.
CSEA Membership Cards & BenefitsA number of our new union members have inquired as to receipt of a CSEA membership card. New members do, in fact, receive a membership card, though the process of producing and distributing the card takes place after union membership is verified, the Local (my office) is notified, and typically will take 8 to 12 weeks following receipt of the member's application at CSEA Headquarters in Albany.
CSEA Unified Court System employees do NOT need to present their membership card to utilize employee benefits, such as vision and dental. However, be aware that CSEA represents many different agencies besides UCS who have different contractual benefits, so it is important that your benefit provider is aware that you are a CSEA member employed by the Unified Court System.
Receiver NoticesPlease remember to include chambers staff in your distribution of the Local 334 Receiver notices. Oftentimes, our notices are posted near KRONOS machines, which chambers staff do not typically utilize.
Court Reporter SeminarA reminder that UCS has announced that a Court Reporter Seminar will be held in Syracuse on Friday, December 28, 2007. Details will be mailed to each court reporter's home address.
Please remember to distribute receiver notices to your co-workers either by forwarding this message, posting it on a bulletin board and/or distributing it within your office/courthouse. Unfortunately, I have spoken with members who have "Local 334 Receivers" within their office/courthouse and yet never receive updates or postings. For those who have taken the time to spread the information within their office/courthouse, we thank you for your efforts in getting updates out to everyone. If any member would like to be added to the e-mail list, please let me know.
At this time, we have only one Receiver in Seneca County and would encourage any other Seneca County member to submit their name for the Receiver list.
Also, with the addition of our Court Officers in a number of counties, we encourage them to submit their names to be added to the Receiver list so that all Court Officers are kept informed as to activities within our Local, contract negotiations, etc.
Union MembershipFYI, when a new UCS employee applies for union membership, their application is forwarded to the CSEA Membership Department via mail and/or fax. At that point, CSEA must wait for two to four weeks to begin to process that application, which is the amount of time that UCS Audit & Control takes to submit verification to CSEA of new employee status. Therefore, from the date the application is mailed to the date the member's paycheck stub will indicate their union membership is, on average, eight weeks.
Employee Benefit Fund - Student BenefitsStudents over age 19 that are children of CSEA Judiciary members are eligible for EBF benefits if they are enrolled for a minimum of 12 undergraduate or six graduate credit hours and are enrolled in a regionally accredited college or university, working toward a bachelor's degree, master degree or associate's degree. Students must apply annually for benefits by filling out the Student Proof form, which is available from the EBF website, www.cseaebf.com, click on "All EBF Forms," click on "Library" on the left-hand side of the page. This form must be completed by the college/university registrar's office and sent to CSEA EBF, P.O. Box 516, Latham, New York 12210.
Informational LuncheonsWe have been conducting informational luncheons over the past few months and have plans to visit more counties through the end of the year. Most of the counties we have visited have new Court Officers, who are new to the Court System and also new to our benefit providers. If we have not been to your county within the last year or so, please be assured, we will be planning more informational luncheons and will be in your county as soon as possible. Of course, when contract negotiations begin to progress, we may have to hold off for a while on scheduling more luncheons. Meanwhile, November luncheons are planned for Schuyler County, November 7th; Tompkins County, November 15th. December luncheons are scheduled for Chemung County, December 4th; Seneca County, December 5th, and Cayuga County, December 13th. Announcements will be sent to Receivers in those counties within two weeks of the luncheon date.
Contract NegotiationsCSEA Judiciary still awaits word on the Executive Branch negotiations, which will set the rate for percent increases and health insurance issues. Executive Branch negotiations updates are available on the CSEA website, www.csealocal1000.org, click on "State Contract Update." This link is updated every week to ten days.
Our CSEA Judiciary-UCS negotiations are tentatively scheduled to continue the last week of November.
CSEA ElectionsI have received a number of inquiries regarding upcoming CSEA elections, nominating petitions and related inquires. There are three elections taking place after the 1st of the year: (1) Statewide Officers, (2) Region Officers (we are Region 5 of CSEA), and (3) Board of Directors, which the Judiciary holds two seats.
The Statewide officers are self-explanatory. These are the officers who are elected to represent the entire CSEA membership (Judiciary and otherwise) and whose offices are at CSEA headquarters in Albany.
Region 5 of CSEA is headquartered in Syracuse and is comprised of 20 counties of CSEA employees (Judiciary and otherwise). Geographically, our Local is comprised of court employees within the same 20 counties of Region 5 -- which is why we represent members within four different judicial districts. Sheila Sears, our Local 334 Treasurer and Unit 4 Treasurer, is the 2nd Vice President of Region 5.
The CSEA Statewide Board of Directors is comprised of representatives from all departments/divisions of CSEA. The Judiciary has held one seat on this board for many years, currently held by Bob Lorenc, Judiciary Local 332 President. The number of representatives on this board is based on membership numbers. The Judiciary during this election process for the first time will be electing two Board Representatives based on the increased CSEA Judiciary membership.
Nominating petitions are forms that contain signatures of CSEA members who are in actuality "allowing" a candidate to place their name on a ballot. The person who signs the nominating petition is NOT voting for the potential candidate but is simply helping the candidate gather the required number of valid signatures to put their name out to the membership as a candidate for office. I was amazed (and quite surprised) at the number of inquiries received regarding these petitions. No, you do not have to personally know the candidate; No, you do not have to intend to vote for the candidate. If your Local or Unit officer brings a petition to you for signature, please feel free to affix your name, knowing that you are simply allowing a candidate to run for office, with no obligation on your part to vote for the him/her in the future.
E-MailI will be changing my e-mail address from the dreamscape address to dlynskey334@yahoo.com over the next week. Please update your address book.
(Kathy Guild, Contract Adminstration Specialist, CSEA Headquarters)
CSEA published a summary of the Unified Court System's contract proposals after we received them. Following is a summary of some of CSEA's proposals to the Unified Court System.
SICK LEAVE
- Increase benefits for line of duty injuriesLOCATION PAY
- CSEA has requested location pay consistent with other bargaining units, retroactive to 04/01/06ON-CALL PAY
- CSEA is requesting that standby on-call roster lists be created and that on-call assignments be equitably distributedUNIFORM AND EQUIPMENT ALLOWANCE
- Increase amount of uniform and equipment allowance to reflect parity with downstate unions and additional amounts for future yearsHOLIDAYS
- Requesting that the day after Thanksgiving be designated as a Floating HolidayREIMBURSEMENT FOR PROFESSIONAL LICENSE
- Requesting that any member required to maintain a professional license or credential required to perform their job duties shall be reimbursed the fee for that license or credential by UCSVACATION BUY-BACK
- Requesting that employees be allowed to designate up to five annual leave days to be exchanged for monetary compensation at a rate of 100 percent for each dayCSEA EMPLOYEE BENEFIT FUND
- Increase contributions from UCS for better benefit packageCHILD/ELDER CARE REIMBURSEMENT
- Increase contributions from UCS for child/elder care reimbursementWORKING CONDITIONS
- Request that early dismissal of employees be allowed if Temperature Humidity Index cannot be lowered below 80 degrees within 30 minutes of the initial measurement, instead of 4 p.m.INSPECTOR GENERAL
- Proposed a Bill of Rights for CSEA members with respect to the Inspector General's Office investigations, which will preserve CSEA members' rights during an investigation, whether or not they are the target of the investigationGRIEVANCE AND ARBITRATION PROCEDURES
- Requesting improved language for grievance and arbitration procedures so that the process is completed in a shorter time-frameCONTINUING EDUCATION
- Requesting that QTP monies continue to be contributed by UCS for continuing education(James Hennerty, Dep. Director of Contract Administration)
CSEA and UCS met during the first week in August to continue negotiations for a new contract. For the first time, UCS presented some of their proposals. Management had indicated earlier in talks that it intended to suggest cutbacks in benefits. Nevertheless, the enormity of the reductions proposed is shocking:PAY
--cap salaries at $115,000
--sunset (allow to expire) increments and longevity bonuses until a new contract is ratified
--reduce longevity bonus
SICK LEAVE
--cut maximum amount of sick leave bank grants from 229 days to 130 days
--employees on sick leave are confined to their homes or must be reachable by telephone at all times
--reduce benefits for line-of-duty injuries
WORKWEEK
--increase to 40 hours a week
OVERTIME
--no time and a half pay until the employee WORKS 40 hours in a week (paid leave would not count as time worked)
QTP MONEY
(used for employee education vouchers and payment to defray health insurance costs)
--eliminate altogether
CSEA EMPLOYEE BENEFIT FUND
--no increases in contributions (which means cuts in current benefits)
--remove retirees from the EBF
--sunset EBF contributions at the end of a contract (that is, no benefits at all until a new contract is reached)
CHILD CARE/ELDER CARE
--no funding for this any longer
WORKING CONDITIONS
--eliminate provision closing courts when temperatures are too hot or too cold
EMPLOYEE ORGANIZATION LEAVE
--significantly reduce amount of EOL available
--prevent CSEA representatives on EOL from accruing vacation and sick leave
UCS further indicated that this was about 75% of its proposals. We expect more demands which would cut our members' benefits even more. Take particular notice of an increased work week, the elimination of child care and elder care payments, and the severe reductions in contributions to the CSEA Employee Benefit Fund. EBF benefits would have to be reduced, and UCS wants retired employees completely removed from the program!
Needless to say, the CSEA Negotiating Team sees a long, hard slog in negotiations until we get to a point where we can agree with UCS on a new contract. The CSEA Team has no intention of making an agreement which would slash our members' benefits.
(June 24, 2007, Terri Vecchio, Scholarship Chairperson)
CSEA Judiciary Local 334 recently presented eight memorial scholarships to graduating high school seniors, children of court employees represented by the union. The two $1,000.00 scholarships were awarded to Brittany Szucs, Boonville and Nathan J. Rockefeller, Delhi. Four $500.00 scholarships were awarded to Pamela A. Kennard, Clinton, Joseph C. Barry. Utica, Megan Barner, Syracuse, and Ryan C. Strader, Cicero. Two $250.00 scholarships were awarded to Allison M. Tebsherany, New Hartford and Christina M. Alibrandi , Fayetteville.
Brittany Szucs is a graduate of Adirondack Central School and she is the daughter of Jeanne Szucs, Court Assistant, Oneida County Family Court. Brittany will be attending Union College in the Fall majoring in Pre-Medical Studies.
Nathan J. Rockefeller is a graduate of Delaware Academy High School and he is the son of Barbara Rockefeller, Senior Court Office Assistant, Delaware County Family Court. Nathan will be attending Hartwick College in the Fall majoring in Liberal Studies.
Pamela A. Kennard is a graduate of Clinton High School and she is the daughter of Barbara Kennard, Court Assistant, Oneida County Court. Pamela will be attending SUNY Brockport in the Fall majoring in Business Administration.
Joseph C. Barry is a graduate of Proctor High School and he is the son of Christine M. Barry, Support Magistrate, Oneida County Family Court. Joseph will be attending Syracuse University in the Fall majoring in Physical Therapy/Chiropractic.
Megan Barner is a graduate of West Genesee High School and she is the daughter of Beth Barner, Court Clerk, Onondaga County Combined Courts. Megan will be attending Marist College in the Fall majoring in Social Work.
Ryan C. Strader is a graduate of Cicero-North Syracuse High School and is the son of Shelley Strader, Senior Court Reporter, Onondaga County Combined Courts. Ryan will be attending SUNY Cortland in the Fall majoring in Physical Education.
Allison M. Tebsherany is a graduate of New Hartford High School and she is the daughter of Barbara Tebsherany, Secretary to Judge, Oneida County Court. Allison will be attending St. John Fisher College in the Fall, majoring in Elementary/Special Education.
Christina M. Alibrandi is a graduate of Fayetteville-Manlius High School and is the daughter of Maria Alibrandi, Senior Court Office Assistant, Onondaga County Surrogate's Court. Christina will be attending Fashion Institute of Technology in the Fall majoring in Production Management/International Trade & Marketing.
The Lt. Michael D. Carraway Memorial Scholarship program is named in memory of Retired Local President Sharon Carraway's husband, a Utica Police Lieutenant and union activist who died unexpectedly in 1994.
(James Hennerty, Dep. Director of Contract Administration)
CSEA and UCS were scheduled to meet for another session of contract negotiations in mid-June. UCS informed CSEA that it did not expect to have its negotiating proposals ready by that time. Both CSEA and UCS have tentatively agreed to meet again in early August. The UCS proposals will seek concessions and reductions in a number of benefits, UCS has told us. CSEA has been preparing for these negotiations since last summer. The CSEA Negotiating Team has presented numerous written proposals to management and attempted to have some real bargaining on the contract. Apparently UCS is not yet impressed with the hard work the CSEA Team has done.
CSEA is deeply disappointed in the continuing pattern of UCS delay regarding negotiations for a new contract. The old contract expired March 31, and CSEA has energetically pushed for an agreement, only to be met by procrastination on the part of management.
UCS has come perilously close to committing an improper employer practice-bargaining in bad faith-by its actions thus far. CSEA is fully prepared, if necessary, to take appropriate legal action to force UCS to cease its dilly-dallying and get down to work on a new contract. Let's hope the August session takes place and is productive.
(May 17, 2007)
The CSEA Negotiations Team met on May 15, 16, and 17, 2007 for our second round of negotiations with the Unified Court System management.
CSEA submitted additional proposals (adding to our initial proposals in March). Regrettably, UCS did not submit any proposals and indicated that they were still, even at this late date, working on them. We discussed our proposals with UCS, and during that dialogue, UCS indicated that they are looking to cut back in many areas beneficial to our members.
Tentative dates are scheduled for mid June.
CSEA has been notified by the Office of the State Comptroller that the addition of $800 to basic annual salaries will be effective April 5th for UCS employees. Because of the lag pay, the raise will be reflected in May 2nd, 2007 paychecks.
CSEA Judiciary Local 334 will be welcoming new transfer-of-function Court Officers in Cortland County and Chenango County on May 17th. There will be an informational meeting for the eligible officers on Thursday, April 12th, 2 p.m., at the Cortland County Courthouse.
A reminder, the $800 payable on March 31, 2007 will be added to the base salary. It is not a lump sum payout.
The CSEA-UCS contract will expire on March 31st, 2007. However, UCS has indicated that increments and longevity bonuses will, in fact, be paid out to eligible members.
An Explanation in response to a recent inquiry:
The Maximum and Longevity steps of the salary schedules are located within our contract, at the very end of the booklet. There are four years between Maximum and 1st Longevity, another four years between 1st Longevity and 2nd Longevity.
Longevity bonuses (as differentiated from 1st and 2nd Longevity steps of the salary schedule) are typically paid within the month of April, possibly the beginning of May, considering we are on a lag payroll and the 1st of the month falls on varying days of the week.
The Court Employee Negotiating Team of CSEA began negotiations with the NYS Unified Court System for a new contract on March 20 and 21. The meetings took place in the Albany area. The CSEA Team had already sent UCS its initial proposals some weeks ago. UCS said it had not yet completed its analysis of CSEA’s proposals, but did engage in some discussion of the issues we presented.
UCS offered no proposals to CSEA yet, although the management representatives indicated they would do so no later than the next bargaining session, which will probably be in mid-May.
Your CSEA Negotiations team met in December 2005 and January 2006 to review member questionnaires and formulate proposals in preparation for meeting with the UCS Negotiations team in March.
Our first negotiations session with both CSEA and UCS present has now been scheduled for March 20th and 21st, 2007. All indications point to a rather lengthy period of negotiations. We will update you with news as it becomes available.
According to UCS, Local 334 Court Officers who transferred into the courts in November of 2006 will not be entitled to salary increments in April of 2007. A grievance has been filed in behalf of these Court Officers, who are located in Onondaga County, Tioga County and Norwich City Court.
Step 1 of the grievance has been denied and the matter has now progressed to Step 2 of the grievance process. We are awaiting a Step 2 hearing date from the UCS Labor Relations Department.
Recently, an inquiry was made regarding what, if anything, will ever be done for members who paid into the retirement system over the now-required ten-year period. Will those members ever see a benefit in consideration of their payments beyond ten years? Will this be brought up in contract negotiations?
This topic is actually a prohibited subject of bargaining and cannot be addressed at contract negotiations. Only the Legislature can address this matter and it is unlikely that will ever be done. For those who paid in over the ten-year period, your reward (and mine) is that we no longer have to pay into the retirement system.
Effective January 26th, 2007, Local 334 President Sharon Carraway retired after almost 32 years in her position in the Unified Court System and as President of Judiciary Local 334. We wish Sharon well in her retirement and appreciate the 14 years of dedicated service representing our members throughout the 20 counties of our Local. As your new Local President, I will be corresponding by mail in the next few weeks with all of our membership.
A reminder that physician and drug co-pay reimbursements must be submitted to the CSEA Employee Benefit Fund by March 31st, 2007. Physician co-pays are reimbursed up to $125 per calendar year. (This does not include emergency room, dental, X-ray or radiographic co-pays.) Drug Co-pays are reimbursable up to $100 per calendar year. Forms are available on our web site, www.cseajudiciary.org under the "Forms and Member Services" link. If you would like to review the guidelines for submitting co-pay reimbursements, visit www.cseaebf.com and click on the Unified Court System link. The entire EBF fund booklet is available online at the EBF web site.
All new Court Officers who have transferred into the courts should be aware that the six-month waiting period for EBF benefits has been waived, with the exception of the maternity benefit, which has a nine-month waiting period. New Court Officers who apply for the co-pay benefit as described above are eligible for reimbursement of physician and drug co-pays incurred only after transferring into the court system.