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| Let me start off by saying that I’m an advocate of going to PERB arbitration. However, in every article I’ve written about contract negotiations I’ve always stated that the best place to get a contract is at the bargaining table. I am finally happy to say that, because of our three previous PERB arbitration victories, we were finally able to pressure the city to negotiate a contract at the bargaining table. And it’s an historic contract. We have obtained something for our members that we have wanted since our administration took over the PBA — and that’s the escalators. I’d like to explain the full impact of these escalators and how they’ll affect you in the long run. Let’s start of with the service longevity escalator. Compounding longevity with wage increases is the most significant repair of a previous shortcoming in our compensation structure. In the past, longevity has represented between 5-10% of base salary at various grades and has never before been automatically increased and compounded with wage increases — which served to lessen the overall compensation increases in every contract settlement or arbitration award since the time longevity payments were introduced in 1971.
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Obtaining this escalator relieves us of the burden of negotiating or arbitrating longevity in every round, a practice that has subjected us to the city’s cost accounting methods, which seek to overcharge us for longevity increases. The new escalator contract provision we’ve obtained for all our members now requires that in the future all existing longevity, including longevity from this round, will increase at the same rate as salary increases do — which will have a tremendous long-term impact on our compensation. Here’s how the service longevity escalator benefits our members directly. It puts more money in your pocket. Here’s a hypothetical example that demonstrates this: Under previous contracts, when two 5% increases were added to a base salary of, say, $50,000, it would amount to an increase of $5,000 (uncompounded), which would be a 10% increase on base wage only! With the escalator, using the same scenario as above, the two 5% increases on the same $50,000 would also increase the longevity by two 5% increases, depending on which longevity step you are at. (Using old longevity schedule: 5yr- $3,745, 10yr- $ 5,745, 20yr- $6,770) your increase would be from: $5,374.50 - $5,677.00. It is an increase, for the same 10% raise, $374.50 - $677.00 dollars. |
Besides this escalator, the new contract adds $1,543 in longevity at all steps that will be compounded with future raises. Also, the compounded effect of the second two 4% raises will add between $331 and $578 to your compensation at various steps. Total new longevity at each step by contract’s end, July 31, 2010, will be:
Another significant feature of the new contract, one we believe is unique to the PBA among all municipal unions, is the provision for compounding current contractual health-and-welfare funding that will rise with future general wage increases. This is a particularly important feature because its absence has induced other city unions to settle for inferior pacts because their health-and-welfare funds were in dire straits. Now, effective last July 31, health-and-welfare amounts will rise with wage increases, providing an extra cash flow in every round that will not diminish other forms of compensation sought.  |