News From OSA - November, 2019

It was a long and hard summer, but the first topic in need of discussion is the contract.

NEGOTIATIONS. Our attempt to settle our contract before the end of June failed because the City never got back to us with any dates for a meeting. We now have a tentative meeting on November 19th and we are pleased about that, at last.

Unfortunately, this will probably not be the final negotiating session because, due to the City's five month hiatus, changes did occur and each change gives the City the excuse (reason?) to claim that they need more time to get the numbers right.

For example, the City has shared with us the fact that they want to settle an item the union had been willing to put off until the next contract. The demand in question asked the City to improve the minimum salaries for "Administrative" level members.

We were willing to defer this issue in order to speed up settlement because DC37 had done the same, and we wanted to have allies as we fought for a raise in the minimums in our next contract. It seemed to make sense to us, since we were convinced that any improvements in such minimums would be resisted by the City, unless we paid for them.

It is, then, puzzling to us that the City wants this matter addressed now. We do not know where they are going with their interest in our demand.

Anyway, we do have our demands and, if the City wants to settle, in our favor, one that we had not expected to resolve, fine. If their interest is to have other OSA members pay to raise the minimum for the affected title, we will say no.

OSA, since our first City contract in 1987, has never felt it wise to "move money around" to meet City needs. If the City chose to create, as they did, an absurd pay structure for the admin titles, we should not ever be asked to pay to correct their error.

The City seems to be less eager to settle than we are, but our options here are limited. We could go to "impasse," but that process itself is very slow. We could also agree to accept less than the "pattern," in order to speed up receipt of due raises, but that might not speed up anything, and it would be self-defeating in any case.

So, finally, our option is to keep on negotiating until the contract is concluded, and to be patient meanwhile.

THE "GET OUT OF JAIL FREE" CARD." In the game Monopoly, a player could get out of jail by paying a fee or handing in a "Get Out Of Jail Free Card." As of July 1, 2019, newly hired members were automatically placed into a health plan known as the HIP HMO Gold Preferred Plan.

Those members were required to stay in that plan for at least a year or until a year after joining, plus whatever time until the next regular health plan re-opener. It all seemed harmless. Then, more than a year after the unions agreed to this experiment, we first learned of the cost of this new plan's drug rider. The cost would "choke a horse."

OSA and other unions protested loudly and an early out from the expensive plan was arranged.

As of this month (November), any of our members in the HIP HMO Gold Preferred Plan who feel they are overpaying for drug coverage will be allowed to transfer to a less expensive option.

The cost of the current HIP HMO plan rider, biweekly, is $125 for a single and $307 for a family. The cost for the new Standard HIP HMO plan rider is $59 for a single and $111 for a family, again biweekly. The cost of the drug rider for GHI-CBP is $38 for a single and $68 for a family, but that option is only available after a year plus coverage by HIP.

Who should transfer at this time? Any member, single or married, who has had little need for prescription drugs probably should transfer. Any member who has made or expects to make heavy usage of such drugs would need to study both plans before switching.

Transfers done in November will be effective on January 1, 2020. More information about the transfer period and how to make changes in your plan can be found in the Fall 2019 Annual Transfer Period notice, which is available on OLR's Health Benefits Program website or by clicking this link.

THE LONG SUMMER. We had training sessions five to seven days a week all summer long, plus the exams at the end of the season.

At the same time, we had to fight DC37 over representation of the Administrative Nurses of the MetroPlus part of the Hospitals Corporation. DC37 is twenty times our size and more. They can dispatch an army of organizers, full time and well paid, to blitz any group of voters.

Now, it was true that OSA had one advantage. We had been asked to help the Nurses get union status because they saw us organizing the Associate Directors of Hospitals title. We had only agreed to try to help them when the New York State Nurses Association would not act.

We had put in two years getting cards and pleading their case before the Board of Collective Bargaining. Then, once the MetroPlus section was ruled eligible for a union, we had gotten signed cards from 95% of them.

Still, if DC37 sent forth its team of organizers, they could honestly claim to be far larger and to represent more Nurses than OSA already did. The fact that they also used deception in their campaign would have given them a further edge except that we "fact checked" them, weekly, all summer long. This last activity was crucial because in a prior election they won the vote by last minute false claims. We were upset by that tactic, as were some of the workers they deceived. A number of those workers wrote letters on our behalf in this election, and this was a great help.

The Nurses finally chose OSA by a vote of better than two to one and we are both pleased and most anxious to keep our promise to represent them as well as possible. Since an unusually large number of them have volunteered to become active, matters are starting well.

We will now resume our efforts on behalf of the remaining Administrative Nurses of the Hospitals Corporation. With their help, we will achieve a further victory for the professional staff employees of the City hospitals.

TIME OFF. Every once in a while we get a nice present without even asking for it. As you can see from Personnel Services Bulletin #440-3, the New York State legislature has given us up to three hours off to vote in primary or special elections. We already get Election Day off for the main elections, but this extra time off for primaries is very welcome.

Given who we, the members of OSA, are, the social scientists do predict, based on our age, education, and occupation, that we, as a group, are very likely to be voters. They are right. Many of us vote in special, primary and general elections.

Until now, we voted before work or after work, but from now on we get a bit of time off from work to do so.

This is wonderful for all of us who are already habitual voters. For those who have not been voting, now it is even easier.

HOLIDAY PARTY MOVES TO TERRACE ON THE PARK IN QUEENS. The OSA holiday party started off small, held on site in the union office. As time passed, attendance grew and we now go to banquet halls to accommodate all who wish to come.

This year, we are changing our site from Brooklyn to Queens, the day of the week from Thursday to Tuesday and the time of the party from 5 to 5:30pm. Many of you are already familiar with our new location, Terrace on the Park in Flushing Meadows Park, Queens.

Ideally, we would prefer lower to mid-Manhattan, but we have been largely priced out of our first choice. The tickets to the party can be ordered by mail or picked up in person at the union office any workday between 9am and 5pm or, especially, at the membership meeting on the evening of November 21st. Tickets will not be available at the door on the night of the party. A flyer for the party, with all of the details for ticket ordering can be downloaded at this link.

In addition, you can download directions to the venue by mass transit and automobile at this link.

This is your chance to get together socially and to meet former coworkers you may not have seen for years.

GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING. Our next general membership meeting will take place on Thursday, November 21st starting, as usual, at 6pm in the union office. A flyer to remind you of the date, time and location can be downloaded at this link. It can be posted as well at your work location. The meeting will be followed by food and then the latest session of our Activists Classroom Training.

News From OSA - November, 2019 It was a long and hard summer, but the first topic in need of discussion is the contract. NEGOTIATIONS. Our attempt to settle our contract before the end of June failed because the City never got back to us with any dates for a meeting. We now have a tentative meeting on November 19th and we are pleased about that, at last. Unfortunately, this will probably not be the final negotiating session because, due to the City's five month hiatus, changes did occur and each change gives the City the excuse (reason?) to claim that they need more time to get the numbers right. For example, the City has shared with us the fact that they want to settle an item the union had been willing to put off until the next contract. The demand in question asked the City to improve the minimum salaries for "Administrative" level members. We were willing to defer this issue in order to speed up settlement because DC37 had done the same, and we wanted to have allies as we fought for a raise in the minimums in our next contract. It seemed to make sense to us, since we were convinced that any improvements in such minimums would be resisted by the City, unless we paid for them. It is, then, puzzling to us that the City wants this matter addressed now. We do not know where they are going with their interest in our demand. Anyway, we do have our demands and, if the City wants to settle, in our favor, one that we had not expected to resolve, fine. If their interest is to have other OSA members pay to raise the minimum for the affected title, we will say no. OSA, since our first City contract in 1987, has never felt it wise to "move money around" to meet City needs. If the City chose to create, as they did, an absurd pay structure for the admin titles, we should not ever be asked to pay to correct their error. The City seems to be less eager to settle than we are, but our options here are limited. We could go to "impasse," but that process itself is very slow. We could also agree to accept less than the "pattern," in order to speed up receipt of due raises, but that might not speed up anything, and it would be self-defeating in any case. So, finally, our option is to keep on negotiating until the contract is concluded, and to be patient meanwhile. THE "GET OUT OF JAIL FREE" CARD." In the game Monopoly, a player could get out of jail by paying a fee or handing in a "Get Out Of Jail Free Card." As of July 1, 2019, newly hired members were automatically placed into a health plan known as the HIP HMO Gold Preferred Plan. Those members were required to stay in that plan for at least a year or until a year after joining, plus whatever time until the next regular health plan re-opener. It all seemed harmless. Then, more than a year after the unions agreed to this experiment, we first learned of the cost of this new plan's drug rider. The cost would "choke a horse." OSA and other unions protested loudly and an early out from the expensive plan was arranged. As of this month (November), any of our members in the HIP HMO Gold Preferred Plan who feel they are overpaying for drug coverage will be allowed to transfer to a less expensive option. The cost of the current HIP HMO plan rider, biweekly, is $125 for a single and $307 for a family. The cost for the new Standard HIP HMO plan rider is $59 for a single and $111 for a family, again biweekly. The cost of the drug rider for GHI-CBP is $38 for a single and $68 for a family, but that option is only available after a year plus coverage by HIP. Who should transfer at this time? Any member, single or married, who has had little need for prescription drugs probably should transfer. Any member who has made or expects to make heavy usage of such drugs would need to study both plans before switching. Transfers done in November will be effective on January 1, 2020. More information about the transfer period and how to make changes in your plan can be found in the Fall 2019 Annual Transfer Period notice, which is available on OLR's Health Benefits Program website or by clicking this link. THE LONG SUMMER. We had training sessions five to seven days a week all summer long, plus the exams at the end of the season. At the same time, we had to fight DC37 over representation of the Administrative Nurses of the MetroPlus part of the Hospitals Corporation. DC37 is twenty times our size and more. They can dispatch an army of organizers, full time and well paid, to blitz any group of voters. Now, it was true that OSA had one advantage. We had been asked to help the Nurses get union status because they saw us organizing the Associate Directors of Hospitals title. We had only agreed to try to help them when the New York State Nurses Association would not act. We had put in two years getting cards and pleading their case before the Board of Collective Bargaining. Then, once the MetroPlus section was ruled eligible for a union, we had gotten signed cards from 95% of them. Still, if DC37 sent forth its team of organizers, they could honestly claim to be far larger and to represent more Nurses than OSA already did. The fact that they also used deception in their campaign would have given them a further edge except that we "fact checked" them, weekly, all summer long. This last activity was crucial because in a prior election they won the vote by last minute false claims. We were upset by that tactic, as were some of the workers they deceived. A number of those workers wrote letters on our behalf in this election, and this was a great help. The Nurses finally chose OSA by a vote of better than two to one and we are both pleased and most anxious to keep our promise to represent them as well as possible. Since an unusually large number of them have volunteered to become active, matters are starting well. We will now resume our efforts on behalf of the remaining Administrative Nurses of the Hospitals Corporation. With their help, we will achieve a further victory for the professional staff employees of the City hospitals. TIME OFF. Every once in a while we get a nice present without even asking for it. As you can see from Personnel Services Bulletin #440-3, the New York State legislature has given us up to three hours off to vote in primary or special elections. We already get Election Day off for the main elections, but this extra time off for primaries is very welcome. Given who we, the members of OSA, are, the social scientists do predict, based on our age, education, and occupation, that we, as a group, are very likely to be voters. They are right. Many of us vote in special, primary and general elections. Until now, we voted before work or after work, but from now on we get a bit of time off from work to do so. This is wonderful for all of us who are already habitual voters. For those who have not been voting, now it is even easier. HOLIDAY PARTY MOVES TO TERRACE ON THE PARK IN QUEENS. The OSA holiday party started off small, held on site in the union office. As time passed, attendance grew and we now go to banquet halls to accommodate all who wish to come. This year, we are changing our site from Brooklyn to Queens, the day of the week from Thursday to Tuesday and the time of the party from 5 to 5:30pm. Many of you are already familiar with our new location, Terrace on the Park in Flushing Meadows Park, Queens. Ideally, we would prefer lower to mid-Manhattan, but we have been largely priced out of our first choice. The tickets to the party can be ordered by mail or picked up in person at the union office any workday between 9am and 5pm or, especially, at the membership meeting on the evening of November 21st. Tickets will not be available at the door on the night of the party. A flyer for the party, with all of the details for ticket ordering can be downloaded at this link. In addition, you can download directions to the venue by mass transit and automobile at this link. This is your chance to get together socially and to meet former coworkers you may not have seen for years. GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING. Our next general membership meeting will take place on Thursday, November 21st starting, as usual, at 6pm in the union office. A flyer to remind you of the date, time and location can be downloaded at this link. It can be posted as well at your work location. The meeting will be followed by food and then the latest session of our Activists Classroom Training.