News from Civil Service Employees Association

For more information contact: Stephen A. Madarasz - 518 257-1270 (o), 518 598-4705 (c)

CSEA Slams Recommendations

ALBANY, NY (04/30/2008; 1420)(readMedia)-- CSEA today slammed two controversial recommendations of the Commission on Local Government Efficiency and Competitiveness as the same old scapegoating of public employees. The report was released publicly today after being leaked to the Buffalo News last week.

"CSEA is offended by the recommendation on mandating public employees' share of health insurance coverage and the proposal to undermine the integrity of the public employee pension system," said CSEA President Danny Donohue. "It is inexcusable that these recommendations come from people who should know a lot better than to mislead the public at the expense of public employees."

Donohue pointed out that mandating minimum insurance premium payments would violate the Taylor Law, which sets health insurance as a matter for collective bargaining.

"At a time when the Taylor Law is celebrating its 40th Anniversary of serving labor, management and the people of New York well, it's disgraceful that the commission would simply ignore it," Donohue said. "Both Labor and Management go to the bargaining table in good faith to reach a fair agreement - health care benefits will always be affected by cost and the give and take of other contract provisions.

"There is a crisis in our nation’s health care coverage that's a lot bigger than just premium costs and mandating public employees to pay more will not solve it."

The CSEA leader also rejected the proposal to consider creating a new tier for the public employee pension system with lesser benefits for new enrollees.

"We will not accept any attempt to create any new divisions among classes of public employees over their pension rights," Donohue. "No public officials including the chair of the Commission raised a public objection when New York state and its localities went for about 10 years without contributing to the pension system in the 1990s while public employees dutifully paid their fair share."

-30-