Small Town News

Tentative labor pact reached with water district

---

A new labor agreement may end nine months of negotiations between the Burney Water District (BWD) and Labor International Union of North America (LiUNA).

On Aug. 26, both groups reached a tentative agreement covering the district's six non-management employees. If adopted by the board and district employees, the new contract takes affect Oct. 1.

The proposed agreement lowers the district's annual cost for employee benefits by $44, 000 the first year and nearly $50, 000 during the second year of the two-year agreement.

The district was negotiating to save $100.000 by cutting benefit cost, cutting staff and reorganizing the workload for the remaining employees.

Water district manager Willie Rodriguez said the district would never have gotten an agreement if the reorganization proposal had remained on the negotiating table.

However, employee reorganization is "still an activity that district management can take action on as they see fit, " Rodriguez said.

The agreement includes converting employees to the union health care plan saving the district nearly $37, 000 annually. The monthly premium drops by nearly 50 percent to $816 per employee per month.

The new plan is "very compatible with the previous plan" for benefits and family members covered, Rodriguez said.

A second agreement sought by the district was for employees paying a portion of their contributions to the California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS).

Currently, the district pays both the employer 16 percent and employee eight percent share to CalPERS.

Under the proposed agreement, employees pay two percent and the district six percent of the employee contribution during the first year, saving the district nearly $6, 700.

The contribution will be equally split between the district and employee at four percent during the agreement's second year, saving the district nearly $13, 400.

Rodriguez said the board rejected a union proposal to waive employee payment for BWD water and sewer base rate fees, which is $2, 160 per year. "Currently everyone (employee) pays consumption and base rate, " the manager said.

The district proposed reorganization included personnel reductions, work schedule adjustments and changes in job duties. The union wanted "status-quo, " Rodriguez said.

The proposal was dropped by the district to "help move negotiations in talking about retirement and health care" cost reductions.

While a reorganization is "not subject to approval of union, " Rodriguez envisions the "union will be involved in the meet and confer process... on personnel policy revisions."

Rodriguez said LiUNA Chief Negotiator Maggie Campbell indicated the union may drop four of the six charges filed against board members.

"Until charges in the pending litigation are dropped, " the manager said he needed to "keep the charges confidential to retain the ability to deal with those in private and closed session."

If the charges are investigated by Public Employees Relations Board (PERB), Rodriguez thinks "we will be exonerated of charges." "The district and union are going to work together, " the manager stated.

"Where they need to be invited as part of the process, they will be invited. Laws dictate how management and union work together. District will follow those rules, " Rodriguez said.



Copyright 2010 The Intermountain News, Burney, California. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from SmallTownPapers, Inc.

© 2011 The Intermountain News Burney, California. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

More from The Intermountain News