The updated report on OPEB (other post-employment benefits) shows a reduction in the state’s projected unfunded actuarial accrued liability (UAAL) from $17.9 billion to $16.2 billion. This reduction builds on last year’s dramatic reduction of $13.3 billion following several health care cost control initiatives implemented across state government.

“Since taking office, we have tried to rethink our approach to managing the state’s finance, so that government is not in the position of choosing between providing services and meeting our obligation to public employees,” Governor Malloy said. “A drop like this in our expected obligations means that we are taking steps to address our issues now and not putting them off for a later date.”

The latest reduction in the state’s future cost liabilities primarily reflects a reduction in health care cost trend rates, as well as changes to the state’s new prescription drug contract terms. The state’s new prescription drug contract will reduce drug costs in the 2013-2014 fiscal year by 11 percent, according to state actuaries. “These savings show what can be achieved by constructive collective bargaining and thoughtful joint projects like our Health Care Cost Containment Committee,” said Attorney Daniel E. Livingston, chief negotiator for the State Employee Bargaining Agent Coalition (SEBAC).

This reduction, based on medical trends and contract changes, follows several other significant changes to state employee health care that have reduced future costs. Those changes over the past few years have included changes in benefit design, eligibility requirements and contribution requirements for employees and retirees.

The state also introduced the Health Enhancement Program (HEP), which helps employees to better manage chronic conditions, and the conversion of the Medicare-age prescription drug program to an Employer Group Waiver Program introduced by the HCCCC and the Office of the State Comptroller.

• PENSION
  In the event of a death of a spouse, the surviving spouse or relative should immediately contact the Healthcare Policy and Benefit Services Division Payroll Department (860-702-3528).  They will instruct you on how to proceed.  Generally, the deceased’s pension check is to be sent back to the State.  The pension benefits for that month will be recalculated and the final payment made to the estate. In the case of spousal option, the spouse will start receiving pension checks in his/her own name the next month. Future pension and health plan benefits are based on which option the retiree chose at the time of retirement.  This option cannot be changed once the employee has retired.

• STATE HEALTH PLAN BENEFITS
  The health insurance benefits are tied to receipt of the state pension.  Upon death of a retiree who had elected a spousal option, the spouse will have the same health insurance benefits as the state retiree, as long as he/she receives a state pension. This includes the opportunity to change plans during the annual open enrollment period.
  
  In the case where there is no spousal option, the state will no longer pay for the health insurance of a spouse. The spouse, however, has the option for continuation of the group health insurance for three (3) years at his/her own cost under the COBRA plan. Once the state is notified of a retiree’s death, the state is required to notify the surviving spouse about his/her option to continue the health insurance. This notification will include the plan options, costs and an application. After three (3) years, the health plan must offer the spouse an opportunity to convert out of the group plan to an individual plan, if available.If you are a new retiree or spouse of a deceased retiree whose deceased spouse chose a spousal option, you are eligible for the health plan coverage and need medical care in the month immediately following your retirement or the death of your spouse advise your medical provider to submit your claim(s) at the end of the month.  This is because it takes time for your paperwork to be processed through the Healthcare Policy & Benefit Services Division and the health plan. Save all receipts for later reimbursement by the health plan, if applicable.  THERE IS NO LAPSE IN COVERAGE.

• STATE GROUP LIFE INSURANCE
  The Healthcare Policy and Benefit Services Division needs two (2) signed death certificates, one of which must be an original. One (the original) is for the Group Life Insurance Unit and the second is required for the Payroll Unit to stop future pension checks being made in the retiree’s name.In terms of the Group Life Insurance (860-702-3537); if the state employee has paid up this insurance and has 25 years or more service and meets the age requirement, the state pays half of the face value to a maximum of $19,000.  For those with less than 25 years of service, that amount will be prorated depending on years of servcie.  Make sure that your beneficiary(ies) are up to date.

It is also important to remember that Council 400 membership is available to the spouses of retired state employees.  Joining Council 400 gives your loved ones access to CSEA’s resourses and peace of mind that if they run into issues dealing with the state, CSEA will have their back.   Call 860-951-6614 or 800-894-9479 for more information. 

Explore the great city of Boston at your own pace.  Do whatever you like; view historic sites, dine at fantasic restaurants, shop the many stores.  Return Bus to Connecticut leaves Boston at 5:30^PM, so you’ll be home in time for dinner!

$32 Per Person

Online Paypal payments add $2 convenience fee.

2 Convenient Pick Up Points

• Waterbury—8:30^{AM
  Hamilton Ave Commuter Lot off I-84}

• Manchester—9:15^{AM
  Park & Ride Commuter Lot, Off Exit 62 on I-84, Buckland Street & Pleasant Valley Rd.}

Send Reservations and Payments to:

CSEA Social Activities, 760 Capitol Ave, Hartford CT 06106

Or Pay Online Via Credit Card/Paypal Below.  Online Paypal payments add $2 convenience fee. 

Select your Pick up point and hit ‘Pay Now’

CSEA is not reponsible in whole or part for any loss, damage, injury, financial loss or whatever to persons or property however caused during or in connection with any tour, trip or activity.

It is becoming clear that the national anti-union movement views Connecticut as a place where attacks on public sector workers could be effective, and have been laying ground work for their operations.  In the last year “Americans for Prosperity”, the right wing organization funded by the multi-billionaire Koch brothers to fight unions and expand corporate political clout, opened an office in Connecticut and has been at the state capitol testifying against pro-worker legislation.  Now, the Koch brothers are looking at the possibility of purchasing the Hartford Courant.  The fear is that our state’s paper of record would abandon objective journalism and become more of an overt propaganda tool in the right wing’s arsenal.  Add that to the Connecticut Republican Party’s invite last month to Scott Walker, the governor who led the fight to strip collective-bargaining rights away from Wisconsin public employees, and you begin to see a frightening picture taking shape.

On May 20th, the Connecticut Republican Party invited Scott Walker to be the keynote speaker at their annual fundraiser. The Fact that Governor Walker was invited in a place of such honor should raise some major red flags for us as union members. In his talk before the Connecticut GOP’s leading candidates for governor and other party officials and major donors, Governor Walker offered a prescription to Connecticut Republicans on how to regain power, much of which involved demonizing and trampling union rights.

It is normal to think “Oh, that can’t happen here”, but it’s important to highlight that when Scott Walker was a candidate for governor in 2010, the political landscape in Wisconsin looked much like Connecticut’s; a traditionally blue state with a Democratic governor and a Democratic controlled legislature.  Walker’s election flipped that dynamic and the newly elected right wing Wisconsin legislature banned public employees from negotiating over their wages and healthcare.  In a disturbing interview after Walker’s speech, Connecticut GOP chairman Jerry Labriola was quoted as saying “I certainly think there is much to be learned by the approach that [Governor Walker] has taken. I would not shy away from saying that he could be a role model for how we could solve our problems.”

Our union has endorsed both Republicans and Democratic candidates who have supported workers’ rights in the past, so it’s troubling to see union rights and the rights of workers in general, becoming a divisive partisan issue.  Union rights, including the right to collectively bargain, are among the most important cornerstones of a stable middle class, so if the Connecticut Republican Party views its best road to power through politicized attacks on our rights to negotiate over our wages and benefits, with the billionaire Koch brothers supporting their efforts, that is disturbing to say the least.

Hartford-After nearly a decade, the Second Circuit Court ruled that former Governor John Rowland’s lay off of nearly 3000 state employees was in fact illegal and a violation of our first ammendment right to freedom of association.  The decision is a tremendous victory for the free speech rights of all Americans. The court held that when a governor punishes people because of the group to which they belong (whether it’s a union or a political party, or a religion), he or she violates our Constitution’s most cherished provisions.

Back in 2002, SEBAC was negotiating with the State of Connecticut and then Governor John Rowland.  Facing a deficit, the Rowland administration sought $450 million in long-term concessions from state employees, and threatened that unless SEBAC agreed to his demands, approximately 3000 union members would lose their jobs.  Although all state employees receive the same health care and pension benefits, the administration intentionally directed their demands for health care and pension concessions, solely to unionized state employees.  When SEBAC didn’t agree to their demands, Rowland followed through with his threat and ordered the laying off of 2800 union members, and only union members.

While the terminated employees were told that they were being laid off due to economic necessity caused by the state’s 2003 deficit, the court found that the firings in fact had a minimal effect on the state’s expenses and did not correlate to the concession demands. The court found that the Rowland administration failed to show why the State’s fiscal health required terminating only union members, rather than implementing membership-neutral layoffs, and stated in its decision that for a state to terminate union members, and union members alone, in the hope of ultimately achieving economic concessions is little different from refusing to hire union members in the first place.  “Conditioning public employment on union membership, no less than on political association, inhibits protected association and interferes with government employees’ freedom to associate.”

The case is now being remanded to the district court to craft appropriate equitable relief, and to consider the case for damages against the former governor.

The Second Circuit’s opinion shows that Rowland’s treatment of public service workers as the enemy is costly and destructive – to the workers and the vital public services they provide, and to every taxpayer.  Instead, it is mutual respect – for the law, for public service workers, and most importantly the public we all serve – which will move us forward towards a better future.  Our country and state simply function better when top officials work with and for working families, instead of against them.

Ultimately the court’s decision is a welcome reminder that in America it is not just the powerful, the rich and the big corporations that have free speech rights. Ordinary Americans whether they work for the government, private industry, or their corner drug store, have rights too.

Click Here to view the full decision.

Come Join Us!

QUARTERLY MEETING

PARAPROFESSIONAL COUNCIL

 CSEA SEIU LOCAL 2001

Working Together Making Us Strong and United!

ALL CHAPTERS SHOULD SEND AT LEAST ONE DELEGATE

DATE:       Saturday, May 18, 2013

TIME:      10:00 AM – 1:00 PM (Registration @ 9:30 AM)

WHERE:    CSEA SEIU Local 2001 Union Hall, 760 Capitol Ave., Hartford, CT

Union Hall is accessed via easy & convenient I-84 exit

SPEAKER: Dave Glidden, Director of Collective Bargaining,  CSEA SEIU Local 2001

AGENDA: By-Laws Revisions, NRCP Conference attendees’ reports,

Open position: Alternate delegate to CSEA Exec. Board

PLEASE NOTE:

Lunch will be served and members will be reimbursed for mileage to Hartford

ALL MEMBERS ENCOURAGED & WELCOME TO ATTEND!

Click Here to RSVP online by May 15^th

Over time, the rules for receipt of retiree health care for state employees have grown more complex.  To know if you are eligible for retiree health care, and what it will cost, follow the steps below.  These rules apply to employees who are currently active, or who retired after October 1, 2011. 

Entitlement to Retiree Health Care

Retired state employees receiving a disability retirement are entitled to retiree health care without meeting any additional requirements.  All other state retirees must meet the additional requirements below in order to receive retiree health care.  Remember that to receive retiree health care, you must meet BOTH of the listed requirements.

Requirement 1—Retiree health care is available only to retired state employees who are actually receiving a pension.  The rules for qualifying for a pension vary by your particular plan, and are not the subject of this memo.  To qualify for retiree health care, you must qualify for a pension.  To receive retiree healthcare, you must be receiving a pension.  Also remember:

Spouses may continue to receive retiree health care after the death of the state retiree only if the retiree chooses a pension option that allows the spouse to continue receiving a pension.¹ 

There are special rules for people who retire under the Alternative Retirement Plan² (the “ARP”) or who exercise the “cash out” option under the Hybrid Plan to allow them to meet this requirement.  Those rules are covered at the end of this memo.  All the other rules below apply regardless of the retirement plan you are in, SERS, ARP, or TRS, or even if you have a mixture of service among the different retirement plans.

Requirement 2—You must meet the minimum years of actual state service³ requirements, if any, that apply to you based upon your date of hire, and in some cases must meet the “Rule of 75”.⁴  In some cases, your state service entitles you to a pension, but not to retiree health care because based upon your hire date, you may require a minimum number of years of actual state service to be eligible for retiree health care.  In other cases, you may have sufficient actual state service to qualify for retiree health care, but may have to delay your receipt until you meet the “Rule of 75”.  To understand these rules, you need to understand what kind of retiree you are.  If you leave state service to go directly into retirement, you are called a “direct retiree”.  If you leave state service, but don’t begin collecting a pension until sometime later (usually because when you left while you were vested in your pension, you were too young to retire),  you are called a “deferred vested retiree.”  The rules below depend upon your hire date, and whether you are a direct or a deferred vested retiree:

The “Age and Years of Service-75” requirement that applies to some Deferred Vested Retirees is called the “Rule of 75”.  So Direct Retirees only need meet whatever “actual state service” rules applies to them based upon their original hire date.  Deferred Vested Retirees must both meet the “Actual state serve” rule that apples based upon their hire date, and if the Rule of 75 applies to them based upon the above chart, they must wait to receive retiree health care until they meet that rule as well.  

 Cost of Retiree Health Care⁵

Depending upon your hire date, the cost of retiree health care may differ significantly if you are a deferred vested retiree rather than a direct retiree.  That difference is permanent.  In addition, Early Retirees (except those with 25 or more years of service who leave by July 1, 2013) pay a temporary premium share instead of the share paid by Normal Retirees.  That lasts until they reach their normal retirement age at which point their premium share reverts to what they would have paid, if anything, as Normal Retirees.   The table below shows how that work.  The specific costs, of course, change over time and are generally accessible at the Comptroller’s website in the retiree health care planner.

¹The dependent children of state retirees or spouses may be entitled to coverage up to age 26, as long as the state retiree, or in the case of a deceased state employee, his or her spouse, is receiving a pension.  State employees who are single or divorced with dependent children under the age of 26 should consult the Comptroller’s office for the specific rules governing pension continuation and retiree health coverage in those situations.     ²The Alternative Retirement Plan is a 401k-like program available as an alternative to participation in the SERS retirement plan only to higher education professional employees.      ³Actual state service counts the time you’ve actually worked for the state on a ½ time or greater basis, and ignores time you’ve worked for the state on a less than ½ time basis.  It also counts military time, but no other purchased service.  If you worked two jobs for the state simultaneously, the hours are combined to see if you are working half time or more.  For those who work on an academic calendar, a semester worked at half-time or more counts as one half year of actual state service.  The definition of half time varies depending on the particular job and bargaining unit.  Minimum service requires count all service time in which you were working half time or more, regardless of which pension plan you were in.      ⁴The Rule of 75 applies to Deferred Vested Retirees only. This is all explained below.     ⁵Active employees who are in the “Preferred Plan” at the time of retirement may elect to remain in that plan as retirees.  The plan has a very substantial premium share which can be found at the Comptroller’s website.  On the other side of the coin are Out of Area retirees who retire at their normal retirement age or later and pay not premium for Out of Area Coverage.

House Joint Resolution 36, a constitutional amendment that would give the General Assembly the authority to allow for early voting and no-fault absentee ballots in elections, passed both the House and Senate.  The fate of this constitutional amendment will ultimately be decided by voters in the 2014 General Election.  CSEA members worked hard to help pass this resolution through the General Assembly because it makes it easier for citizens to participate in elections and is a commonsense improvement to our democratic system.

Senate Bill 823 would make an employee eligible for workers’ compensation benefits if “a licensed and board certified mental health professional diagnoses the employee with a mental or emotional impairment and determines that the impairment originated from the employee witnessing the death or maiming, or its immediate aftermath.”  Covering this type of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is long overdue, and especially important in the light of the tragic shooting at the Sandy Hook Elementary School.  Currently, the bill is awaiting a vote in the State Senate.

House Bill 5250 increases penalties for drivers who violate in driving safety laws in work zones.  Too regularly, careless drivers cause accidents in work zones that harm and sometimes even kill Connecticut state employees who are at work on our state’s highways.  HB 5250 passed unanimously out of the House of Representatives and is awaiting action in the State Senate.

House Bill 6502 gives paraprofessionals a majority of seats and a greater voice on the State Paraprofessional Advisory Council.  CSEA already has a representative on the Council, but in its present configuration paras represent only a minority of members.  HB 6502 passed unanimously out of the House and Senate and has been signed into law by the governor.

House Bill 6354 is one of the governor’s budget implementer bills.  In its originally proposed form, the bill, among other things, made wide ranging changes to the administration of state personnel policy and sought to consolidate the Department of Construction Services into the Department of Administrative Services while also transferring CSEA members who work as construction project managers into other state agencies.  CSEA members testified against these misguided proposals and kept pressure on Appropriations Committee members to amend the bill before voting it out of committee.  Thanks to the hard work of CSEA members, the amended version of the bill no longer contains these proposals opposed by CSEA.

Anti-Public Employee Bills.  Every session of the General Assembly contains legislative proposals that are designed to reduce or eliminate the pay and benefits earned by public employees and retirees, and the 2013 session has been no different.  Upwards of thirty bills were introduced to do things like change the state employee defined-benefit pension to a defined-contribution or 401(k) plan, reduce pay for state employees, and cut retiree health care benefits.  Thanks to the involvement of members and CSEA’s political program, we have been able to stop these bills.

In the waning days of this session CSEA is still working on advancing legislation important to members like a bill which would require the state to perform a cost-benefit analysis before contracting out work performed by state employees, increasing the spousal allowance for preretirement death benefits from 50% to 100%, and protecting funding for municipal school transportation services.

The last weeks of a session are usually a mad dash to get as much done before the session expires on June 5, and without an agreement on the state budget as of this writing, that will be the case this year.  CSEA’s political program is an integral part of the work of our Union Local because as public employees, the jobs and pay and benefits of CSEA members are part of the political process.  With ever increasing attempts in Connecticut and throughout the nation to scapegoat public employees, CSEA members know how important it is to have a strong voice in the legislative process.  We will work to provide a recap of the legislative session for our next edition of the CSEA News.

We have been informed that the supplemental payments will be made in the paycheck dated May 3^rd.  

Q.)   Who is entitled to a $100 reimbursement?
A.)  Those employees or their spouses identified with a chronic disease(s) as listed in the 2011 SEBAC agreement. Those disease states are Diabetes, both Type 1 and 2; Asthma and COPD; Heart failure/heart disease; Hyperlipidemia (High Cholesterol) and Hypertension. Those employees were identified by either medications prescribed to them to treat their chronic disease or doctors’ visits coded to one of these disease states.

Q.)   Who is not entitled to the $100 reimbursement?
A.)  Members not in a chronic disease state.

Q.)   When was it due in our paychecks so members can check?
A.)    The second pay period in February.

Q.)   Who will receive a supplemental payment? 
A.)  Those HEP members who were in chronic disease state, enrolled in the HEP program and did not receive their payment in February.