PROVIDENCE – In response to a request today by R.I. Superior Court Judge Patricia A. Hurst, Gov. Donald L. Carcieri agreed to defer the implementation of his July 31 executive order imposing health-plan changes and fee increases on members of all state employee unions that have not ratified the state’s “memorandum of settlement.”
Carcieri agreed to the delay in order “to provide Judge Hurst with adequate time to review this important and comprehensive issue,” the governor’s office said in a late-afternoon statement.
The court has asked Council 94 to file its briefs in the case on Monday, and has scheduled a conference with both sides in the dispute for 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 6.
The changes – including new “co-share” payments Carcieri said would be deducted from workers paychecks – originally had been slated to take effect on Aug. 8.
Under Carcieri’s executive order, the members of labor unions that have not ratified the June memo – which some unions have rejected and others have not yet put to a vote – “shall enjoy the same health, vision and dental plan benefits as non-union executive-branch employees and as employees whose unions have negotiated and ratified agreements containing these cost savings,” and will be charged accordingly, he said in his July 31 statement. (READ MORE)
Those “benefits” and “cost savings” were part of the tentative agreement – the product of a half-year’s negotiations between state and union officials – that was overwhelmingly rejected last week by the members of Rhode Island Council 94 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO. (READ MORE) The state’s offer included “harsh economic hits” that workers saw as outweighing any “positive aspects,” Council 94 President J. Michael Downey said at the time.
In his comments yesterday, however, Carcieri referred only to the “numerous concessions from the state, including not going forward with the layoff of hundreds of employees and guaranteed wage increases of 8.5 percent over the four-year contract.”
Six other unions – besides Council 94 and its constituent locals – also have rejected or not yet ratified the state’s proposed “co-share and plan design changes for fiscal year 2009,” Carcieri said in his executive order. Those other unions are:
• Council of Budget Personnel; the Association of Clerical Technicals / URI / National Education Association of Rhode Island (NEA-RI)
• Professional Staff Association of the R.I. Department of Health / NEA-RI;
• Rhode Island Brotherhood of Correctional Officers – Professional Unit
• Rhode Island Court Reporters Alliance, Local 4829, RIFTHP / AFT, AFL/CIO
• Rhode Island Probation & Parole Association of Classified Employees (Clericals / Aides)
• Rhode Island Probation & Parole Association of Classified Employees (Supervisors / Counselors)
“The action by these unions to reject the agreement has only weakened the state’s fiscal situation, requiring this unilateral action to balance the budget,” Carcieri said. In imposing the new fees and plan-changes, he also cited a “budget deficit of historic proportions” and his own “statutory obligation … to prepare and administer the state’s budget.”
Among other changes imposed by his executive order, the members of those unions now will be required to contribute a share of the cost of their health insurance plans, Carcieri said.
For full-time workers covered by individual medical plans, the tab will range from 12 percent of the total annual premium for those making less than $45,000 per year to 25 percent for those making $90,000 or more. Co-share payments for full-time workers with family plans will range from 8 percent of total premiums for those making less than $25,000 per year to 25 percent for those receiving annual salaries of $90,000 or more.
Part-time workers eligible for health coverage will face co-shares of 20 percent, for those making less than $90,000 per year, or 35 percent for those making more, Carcieri wrote.
The governor’s order also sets co-payments of $10 for office visits with a primary care provider or $20 with a specialist, $35 for urgent care and $100 for emergency room care; sets prescription co-payments of $5 to $40; and makes changes to mail-order pharmacy plans and crown coverage under the state dental plan.
Meanwhile, the governor’s office said, Carcieri has directed his staff “to notify the specific unions that have not agreed to the settlement of the [state’s] intention to move swiftly to conciliation and arbitration, in an attempt to finalize a new contract if possible.”
But that statement – the administration’s first public response to the unfair labor practices charge filed against the State of Rhode Island this week by its largest employees’ union, Council 94 (READ MORE) – should not be seen as an invitation to reopen negotiations, the governor said.
“I want to make this very clear,” Carcieri said. “We have no intention of offering more than what was already negotiated and agreed to. That was our best and final offer.”
A response was issued by Council 94 within hours of the governor’s actions.
“Today, Governor Carcieri has made a difficult situation worse,” Council 94 Executive Director Dennis R. Grilli said. “By attempting to unilaterally impose increased health-care premium co-shares upon our members and their families the governor has chosen a path that will increase the level of tension and acrimony between state employees and this administration.
“While we want to have a contract that is fair to Rhode Island taxpayers and some of the lowest paid state employees, Council 94 will not be bullied, coerced or intimidated,” Grilli said. “Further, Council 94 is fully prepared to fight and respond to the Carcieri administration’s actions swiftly and with all of the resources at our disposal.”
Regarding Carcieri’s charges that the unions are standing in the way of a balanced budget, the Council 94 chief noted that in June, “Governor Carcieri refused to accept a proposed settlement that would have saved the state over $40 million dollars.
But, he added, “when Governor Carcieri refused to accept the proposed settlement, Council 94 acted appropriately. We exercised restraint. The governor should now exercise the same restraint.
“Now that our members have taken a democratic vote to reject a proposed settlement, he has decided to resort to scare tactics. … Unfortunately, the path that the governor has chosen will cost Rhode Islanders more money in the long run. We sincerely hope that the administration will negotiate in good faith, instead of this reckless and irresponsible course of action,” Grilli said in his July 31 statement.
News and information from the R.I. Governor’s Office are available at www.governor.ri.gov.
Rhode Island Council 94 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), AFL-CIO – based in North Providence – is the state’s largest public-employee union, with about 4,100 members or one third of active state employees. Additional information is available at www.RICouncil94.org.
The R.I. Labor Relations Board, part of the R.I. Department of Labor and Training, oversees collective bargaining elections and resolves charges of unfair labor practices. Additional information is available at www.dlt.ri.gov/lrb.
