Employees agree to health care, cost-of-living raise, end strike at Philadelphia FCU

<p>PHILADELPHIA – Employees at Philadelphia Federal Credit Union and members of union group Local 32 voted to accept the conditions of a settlement, ending a work stoppage prompted by a change in health care coverage costs. Steven Tully, secretary and treasurer of Local 32 of the Office and Professional Employees International Union told Credit Union Times that 42 employees “unanimously” voted to ratify a contract that allows employees to be informed of the specific rates for health care costs for families and children and for those costs to be frozen until December 31, 2004. Employees also have the option of choosing from an additional HMO plan that has lower costs, Tully said. All employees, regardless of union affiliation will now have access to two healthcare packages through PFCU’s provider, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, said Karen Eavis, PFCU’s vice president of marketing. “We initially offered the HMO choice to union employees but that option was turned down. We talked about revisiting the option and Local 32 decided to go with it,” Eavis said. PFCU will continue to pay 100% coverage for all 205 employees and their children and spouses until July 1. From there, employees can choose to either pay 20% of insurance costs for children and 50% for spouses through one plan. The HMO plan allows 100% for employees, 100% for children and 25% for spouses. Separately, employees will get a 3% cost-of-living raise for a three year-period above the city’s averages for the last three years – 2.5%, 3.5% and 2.5%, respectively, Tully said. All employees received the first raise and a bonus on April 24, the first day back to work for striking employees. Local 32 also agreed to drop the “unfair labor practices”complaint filed with the National Labor Relations Board a week into the strike. In the end, there were no layoffs, everyone came back to work on April 24 and “morale seems fine,” Eavis said. “Everyone has showed up, there hasn’t been a disruption on our service to members and we’re pleased that we came to a timely resolution,” she added. After negotiations stalled on who should bear the expense of new-health care costs at PFCU, some union employees belonging to Local 32 stopped working on April 11, picketing the increase and also what some were calling “unfair” labor practices. At issue was PFCU’s change in health care coverage through its provider Blue Cross/Blue Shield. Last September, the provider informed PFCU that due to rising health care expenses, administrative costs would increase by 36%, Eavis said. PFCU had previously paid 100% of healthcare benefits for all of its employees but traditionally budgeted for an increase between 6 and 10%. -</p> <p>[email protected]</p>