CUPE Strike: Little To Do With PRBs

My ace daughter/photographer captured this pile of garbage at a neighbour's home, waiting for CUPE workers today. How many other homes and businesses will look the same way making a mockery of the claim that 75-80% of the garbage had already been dealt with by citizens.

CUPE workers and other union workers get hammered; Government Motors' new directors get a $200,000 retainer and a company vehicle for a part-time job.

Thought I was telling stories about this being an AMO/FCM/Provincial Government joint effort to go after Unions:

• "Although reluctant to preach any lessons learned, Mr. Francis said his council was willing to share its experience from the strike with any other municipalities who wanted it.

Hmmm, if he charges for this anti-Union expertise, do we get that income back as part of our tax rebate?

Our Mayor had the time as well to:

• "wish all the best to the residents of Toronto and only hope that it doesn't go as long as ours did"

And a few days before it seems, while we were still in the midst of negotiations, he could call Toronto's Mayor since he was kept out of micro-managing negotiations and could say:

• "Listen, my thoughts are with you and your family."

And even when he was cooking, our Mayor had presence of mind:

• "Windsor Mayor Eddie Francis expressed his support for Miller while making pancakes with his young daughters last night.

So we were all suckered after all. From our newest BLOGGER in town quoting a rep from Standard and Poor's
http://lineosight.blogspot.com/2009/07/we-werent-told-truth.html

• "In answer to your questions about the city's PRBs: contingent liabilities, such as this, are one of many factors that are part of our analysis, other factors that we look at include the economy, operating performance, and debt and liquidity levels (both present and future) to name a few. Since we already factor the PRBs as part of our analysis of a number of different factors, we would not expect the rating to change based on just that aspect."

Our Treasurer tells us that there is no immediate impact:

• "It's been said there is no benefit to this for 30 years," said treasurer Onorio Colucci. "That's true, but this liability was really something not sustainable for us...
  
  City leaders anticipate it will take between 40 and 50 years before current employees are completely grandfathered out and the $291-million price tag is eliminated."

In fact mini-Gord tells us that

• Mayor Eddie Francis and council responded by delivering the first significant reduction in city labour costs in memory: $35 million in unfunded liabilities for post-retirement benefits will be off the city's books within 10 years."

That huge unfunded liability sky-rocketed under Eddie's financial watch both as a Councillor and for his years as Mayor:

• "The city's unfunded liability --the bill owed for lifetime retiree coverage -- had grown by 67 per cent in nine years because of higher drug and hospital costs, reaching $291 million this year for all employee groups."

PRBs was the issue picked for PR purposes to crush the Union even though it could have been negotiated long before the collective bargaining process started as was done with the Windsor Public Library. However in that case, Eddie would have had to acknowledge that Steve Salmons was better at being the head of an Organization than he was since there was no strike over that issue with the CUPE Library workers. That could never happen!

What the fight was really about from the labour relations pespective was the City's demand that CUPE make major concessions. From that perspective, Eddie failed. Even mini-Gord was forced to concede that:

• "Windsor's property tax hawks will be complaining bitterly today that city council flubbed the best chance in a generation to get labour costs under control.
  
  We had CUPE on the ropes, they'll howl, and they still get a 6.3 per cent wage increase? And they get all their vacation plus a signing bonus of two grand for nothing? Outrageous!
  
  They have a point. If a struggling corporation can't cut costs during bad times, when can it? But taxpayers should thank their councillors today -- well, most of them, anyway -- for sticking to their guns during a strike that turned into a nerve-racking staredown for both sides.
  
  There isn't a shadow of a doubt taxpayers won this strike, even if they didn't get the wage and job cuts so many of them think were deserved in CUPE's case."

That failure is even greater when one considers that the City had a $24M and counting strike fund and that many of the workers on strike were low-paid women employees , often single mothers. Yet the City winds up paying out money.

Hardly a lesson that Eddie should be teaching any other City Mayor along with the OLRB complaints and the disastrous Caboto Protocol fiasco that cost taxpayers dearly in the end. The legs were cut off from under Eddie once that happened. He had no choice but to settle!

I'd tell you how much it cost taxpayers except the Star keeps changing the numbers:

1. Strike-busting CUPE deal costs City of Windsor $287 million [I cannot find this story now just the headline on Google]
   
   
2. Strike-busting CUPE deal costs City of Windsor $17.2M over four years"
   
   
3. Strike-busting CUPE deal costs City of Windsor $12M over four years

The City wanted a "net zero" approach, concessions in 8 different areas according to the Union ie if CUPE wanted an improvement in one area, it would have to be taken from another

I received a very extensive summary of what happened from a "Ghost Blogger." Let me give you some excerpts. It demonstrates the City victory that wasn't. In reading this as well, think about whether the issues were that difficult to resolve such that it took 15 weeks to negotiate a settlement. I will address one more issue at the end:

THE REACTION

In contrast to the ratification meeting last week, when there were few questions but a lot of angry comments, this time more of the speakers simply put forth questions for clarification.

The recreational workers liked the fact that they are now included among those who will qualify for PRBs if and when they are successful in obtaining full time employment. Previously they were excluded.

However, their anger arose over the lump sum amount. In the last proposal they were grouped together with the part-timers/temporaries and offered the $650 lump sum (which was half of the $1300 that full-timers were offered); this time the part-timers and temporaries once again got an amount based upon half of what full-timers received, namely $1,000 lump sum, but the recreational staff were categorized into a separate group and received only $500.

Okay, now a few comments about the new contract itself. Keep in mind that when the negotiations first began way back when, the city was asking for 8 major concessions and offering net zero wages. The offer that we ratified was a gain that definitely improved upon a net zero package and in the end we only conceded one major item...PRBs. Even that concession contains very beneficial language that had not been previously won from the Corporation until this last round of talks.

MONEY

The percentages remain the same....1.0%, 1.5%, 1.8% and 2.0%. There is a difference though. The current year percentage now begins as of August 1st, whereas the previous one was retroactive to January 1, 2009. So the city saved some money there but they applied that saving toward the lump sum incentive, increasing it from the previous $1300 to $2,000.

Furthermore, the union won its demand that the lump sum be paid out to the employees in a timely manner. We had requested that it be paid to us within 5 days of returning to work; we were willing to bend a bit on that and stretch it as much as 10days but not more. We knew that the city would drag its feet and it could be months before we would see the money. The city agreed to the rapid payment schedule. The lump sum will be paid out in the last week of July or first week of August.

JOINT JOB EVALUATION

In the beginning the city sought concessions on JJE language that would have seriously affected the process. The union successfully swept that off the table. Our JJE language remains unchanged from our previous contract.

BUMPING

The city had originally sought significant changes in "bumping" language. They were so significant that it was the primary reason that I gave the union a "yes" when they called our strike mandate vote months ago. If the city had got what they first asked for with regard to bumping, contracting out would have become a much easier process for the city than it is now. In the end, the union whittled the bumping language down to a few minor language changes but all the significant aspects that the city had sought were dropped in this contract that we just ratified.

JOB SECURITY

I cannot recall what the city was offering in the beginning, but in their offer last week they offered us the typical "one for one"...the date at which an employee obtains job security was moved forward by one year for each year of the four year contract. This was the previous offer...

No member who is presently employed and was employed as of December 31, 1991 shall be laid off for any reason. As of January 1, 2009 the date became 1992, as of 2010 it became 1993, as of 2011 it became 1994, as of 2012 it became December 31, 1995.

The new contract that we just ratified has improvements to that...

No member who is presently employed and was employed as of December 31, 1991 shall be laid off for any reason. As of January 1, 2009 the date became 1993, as of 2011 it became 1995. Both the 2009 and 2011 years leap forward by TWO years. Given the upcoming Service Delivery Review and subsequent changes that could occur as a result of it, this will give job security to more members in a timely way at a time when it will likely be very beneficial for them.

NEW HIRE MEDICAL EXAMINATION

In the settlement offered last week "All necessary medical examinations, including x-rays, shall be arranged by the Corporation and paid for by the new hires." In the contract which we ratified, the Corporation will pay for these examination and x-rays.

BENEFITS

Originally, the Corporation had sought concessions. I can't remember everything they were trying to take away but it did include an increase to the employee's co-pay from the current $2.00 per prescription to $5.00 per prescription. In the contract just ratified, there are NO concessions, not even with the co-pay...it remains at $2.00 and everything else remains the same as our previous contract.

DENTAL RATES

The union successfully negotiated that current ODA rates will be covered by our benefits plan as of August 1, 2009 and that each subsequent year of the contract will be covered as of January 1st of that year. In other words, the ODA rate that our benefits plan will pay is exactly aligned with the date the rates take effect.

POST RETIREMENT BENEFITS

Bet you thought I would never get to this one, eh?

Yes, we gave up PRBs but we got significant language that no other CUPE local has ever achieved when they gave up PRBs.

As you know, the city has been adamant on the PRBs. In the beginning they wanted no PRBs whatsoever for new hires. The union succeeded in getting PRBs for new hires but capped at age 65, after which they would no longer have these benefits.

But the really significant gain that the union made in this last round of negotiations was in language that enshrines the PRBs in the contract and allows the union to come back to this issue each time a new contract is negotiated. As Ken Lewenza Jr. pointed out weeks ago, over time the union may be able to gradually negotiate employer contributions to the new hires benefits fund over the years. By the time 30 years is up, who knows how much we may have negotiated back in the form of employer contributions to that fund?

Furthermore, contract language guarantees that no future negotiations can take away the PRBs for current employees. In addition to the contract language, a separate contract with each employee will also legally guarantee those PRBs for lifetime for employees and spouses and qualified dependants.

And, there is contract language that now says that even recreational employees, in addition to temps and part-timers, are now entitled to PRBs should they be successful in obtaining fulltime employment with the Corporation.

That PRB language was fought for hard and the membership was very appreciative of the result. Most of us were already resigned to the fact that we were going to have to concede on the PRBs. Our executive tried every possible way to present compromises on the PRBs in the form of various cost share scenarios but the Corporation refused to consider ANY cost share plan whatsoever.

The Corporation has also agreed to allow the union to select their own benefits provider for a self-funded plan for new hires. The Corporation will have no vote on the board. And employees will have various options that will allow them to opt in or out in a variety of ways. Very flexible.

RETURN TO WORK AGREEMENT

We now have very clear language as to who will return to work and when.

No mention of "New Beginnings" this time.

No prorated loss of vacation time as a result of the three month work stoppage.

Very specific language regarding the handling of vacation schedule between now and the end of the year, including the option for some employees to request a two-week payout of vacation IF they meet certain criteria - we can only request the payout if our department head cannot give us the actual time off that we are entitled to before year end and, of course, it is subject to budgetary approval, and the request must be made within 30 days. So some employees will not have the option.

There is no interruption of benefits due to the work stoppage but CUPE National agrees to fully reimburse the Corporation for any benefits paid out during the work stoppage.

Employees have the option of purchasing both portions of the OMERS pension plan (employee/employer) but at the employee's expense. (The union is arranging for an OMERS rep to hold a meeting ASAP with interested members to discuss their options with regard to buying back or not.)

Overtime shall be administered according to the terms of the Collective Agreement excepting that banked overtime caps shall be waived until the end of 2009.

Finally, all disciplinary action of any sort shall be dropped and removed from personnel files, excepting those which involved police charges. All documents, letters, photos, videos, recordings, films etc BY EITHER PARTY shall be destroyed within 72 hours of mutual ratification.

One other point not mentioned by my reader...the OLRB complaint against the City can move forward.

If there are errors, I am sure that readers will let me know.

The final point. If you agree with me that this strike should never have lasted so long, then you have to ask why and what the workers really lost. The obvious answer is that they lost all of their salary for the strike period. Is that fair and what should be done about it? Let me remind you what Councillor Postma Blogged once more and the answer about why and what steps CUPE workers should consider should jump out:

• "Last week was rare with a unanimous motion not to go to binding arbitration and to reaffirm faith in our bargaining team.
  
  Last week we made the decision to allow our team more freedom to negotiate a contract that is fair to both parties and we also agreed that binding arbitration is not the right path for us. I strongly believe that for the past 7 weeks council has not given our negotiating team the tools to truly negotiate. We have set parameters for them but have not given them the autonomy required to get a contract. In essence they have been negotiating with themselves...
  
  I am not sure what the next steps are other than to get back to the table and negotiate the contract. CUPE Local 82 provided a proposal last and the City must respond to it, so the ball is in our court now...
  
  I know we can get a contract, for me it is not soon enough. I just want the negotiating teams to return to the table and get it done. Enough already!

The real war may only just have begun. Except now CUPE workers have a paycheque to sustain them and their families and to help finance their struggle should they choose to move forward.