Largest State Employees Union Ratifies New $500 Million Contract
By Don Thompson, Asssociated Press Writer - July 16, 2006SACRAMENTO (AP) _ The largest state employees union has ratified what union officials called their biggest contract ever, a package that could be worth $500 million over three years.
The contract was approved by 94 percent of Service Employees International Union Local 1000's 85,000 members after a monthlong vote, the union said Saturday.
SEIU 1000 includes about half of all state unionized employees in nine bargaining units representing state accountants, agriculture inspectors, custodians, counselors, engineers, nurses, printers, teachers and technicians.
The agreement comes as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger runs for re-election and reaches out to public employee unions that successfully opposed his proposals in last fall's special election. A federal court-appointed watchdog this week accused Schwarzenegger of backsliding on reforming the state's deeply troubled corrections system as he tries to appease the powerful prison guards' union, a charge administration officials deny.
SEIU 1000's contract expired a year ago, and members had picketed, lobbied lawmakers and threatened to call the first state employees strike in California history if an agreement wasn't reached.
"It's certainly a significant contract from where they started. We were pretty far apart," said Lynelle Jolley, spokeswoman for the Department of Personnel Administration. "So we consider it a real feather in our cap to reach an agreement that everybody thinks is a good deal." A Schwarzenegger spokesman referred calls to Jolley for comment.
Union President Jim Hard said the agreement avoids the administration's initial demands which he said would have cut the average state workers' compensation by 14 percent.
"We stood up and fought for respect and a fair contract. And we won. It's a big step forward," Hard said in a statement.
SEIU 1000 called the contract the largest ever for a state employees' union. Jolley didn't dispute that description because this is the biggest contract ever for the largest union.
However, the state Finance Department calculated that an expiring five-year contract with the California Correctional Peace Officers Association cost the state $2 billion in wages, concessions, overtime, sick leave and other Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation administrative costs.
Under the new contract, each SEIU 1000 member will get a one-time $1,000 bonus, which equates to about 2.3 percent of a typical union members' annual salary and will cost the state $85 million. They will get a 3.5 percent cost of living increase this year and between 2 percent and 4 percent next year.
In addition, nearly 18,000 state employees, including auditors, nurses, librarians and teachers, will get raises of between 5 percent and 10 percent to bring their salaries closer to what they could earn in the private sector.
"It helps us catch up after three years without a wage increase," said Hard. "It protects our retirement and health care benefits. It will make it easier to recruit and retain qualified people to provide the services that keep our state healthy, safe and strong."
The contract must now be ratified by the Legislature and signed by Schwarzenegger, but both have said they will approve the agreement.
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