SUNY Contract Talks
CONTRACT 5 - NEGOTIATIONS UPDATE
Tuesday, August 18, 2009 4:06PM
Health Care Negotiations: Settled
Early this afternoon, the Union settled a tentative agreement on health insurance
negotiations for the SUNY Graduate Workforce. This settlement is based on completion
of the remainder of the contract articles. Early in the negotiating process, the
Union team agreed to break out health insurance (HI) articles into a negotiating
subcommittee to focus on the Student Employee Health Plan (SEHP). Today's settlement
covers all "Article 6 Health Insurance" issues except a subsection on eligibility
still under discussion at the Main table. After very tough talks detailing concerns
on the State's part about its bleak financial picture and the rejection of multiple
settlement approaches, a conceptual settlement on SEHP coverage for 2007-2011 now
exists between the Union and the State. When the Union meets with the State's team,
it is comprised of representatives for the State's side from the Governor's Office,
SUNY, Division of Budget and NYS Civil Service. Key features:
* some progress in moving the Rx Cap up - settlement amount gives
an additional $500 making the new cap $3,000,
* avoiding additional co-pays to use Student Health Centers where
they exist,
* a joint partnership inform GSEU members of how best to maximize
every Rx dollar they spend,
* revising contract language to be more clear and user-friendly,
* updating mental health language to conform to Timothy's Law.
Today's Union victory has been years in the making. The negotiating process is
a lengthy marathon, with this first tenative agreement of two, the Union has
cleared this first hurdle and can now focus on the thorny issues still on the
main table such as compensation, job protection, and workload.
Kathleen Sims
Executive Vice President Education Division
CWA Local 1104/GSEU
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CWA 1104/GSEU BARGAING TEAM
Kathleen Sims,
EVP & Chief Negotiator
Monazir Khan,
BA At Large
Arindam Mandal,
BA - Albany
Mia Jorgensen,
BA - Buffalo
Kira Schuman,
BA - Stony Brook
Assistant
Bill Schimmel, Union Counsel
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