From: Kevin Wilson
Sent: Thursday, May 08, 2008 11:33 AM
To: 'Joanne Carder'
Cc: 'nabet@kqed.org'
Subject: NABET Response to Joanne's Email

Joanne,

As you are aware and now want to deny, in the recent negotiations you failed to respond truthfully to the Union's questions regarding the costs of the benefit plan.  Had your team told us that the current level of benefits exceeded the 10.9% of base pay the Union would have immediately proposed a higher number than the 10.9%  in the contract.  We relied on "good faith" and accepted the information you gave us across the bargaining table as the truth.  You now want to claim that  the actual rate of benefits at the time we asked was in fact higher than the 10.9  percent.  This deceit will not stand and is a direct violation of the stated KQED Operating Principal #2 "Be open, honest and direct".     

As for asking for the Union's suggestions on  ways to find cost savings – your email below carefully says  we "were unwilling to come up with alternative cost savings measures within the contract.”  Again you are being deceitful.  As you know the Union has suggested as a means of savings  $200,000 NCPB could do one of two things. (1) Retire the overextended debt of 10 Million dollars to purchase KTEH over a more reasonable and fiscally sound period of 8 to 10 years instead of the overly aggressive 3 years management has chosen, thereby adding well over $200,000 to the bottom line to NCPB each and every year.   And /or (2):  our other suggestion that would save $257,504  plus bonuses, each and every year was to not fill the position of  Chief Content  Officer -- management  had felt  that position was so important, it went vacant for more than two years !  The $257,504 annual salary, not to mention the bonuses and the 4% wage increase you have budgeted for this position each and every year would more than cover the savings you are seeking. Together by making these two sound decisions  NCPB would save over $465,000 a year instead of taking it out of the pockets of hard working union members. 

Kevin Wilson

 __________________________________________________________________________

From: Joanne Carder [mailto:jcarder@ncpb.com]
Sent: Wednesday, May 07, 2008 3:23 PM
To: NABET Members
Subject: FW: nabet_001.pdf

 I wanted to share with you an e-mail and accompanying table that I sent to Kevin Wilson this afternoon.  As you can see, the costs of benefits for NABET-represented employees have increased significantly each year and far exceed the 10.9% contribution required in the contract. 

 -----Original Message-----
From: Joanne Carder
Sent: Wednesday, May 07, 2008 3:13 PM
To: 'Kevin Wilson'
Subject: nabet_001.pdf

 Kevin--We have prepared this summary of NABET benefit costs in relation to unit payroll for current FY08 in response to your requests for information.   As you can see, the costs for NABET-represented employees   have increased progressively each year and far exceed the 10.9% required  in the contract. Given the increasing costs, during our recent  consultation meetings with you, we asked you to identify costs savings from the contract to offset these increases, e.g. significantly reducing the  27.5% differential currently paid to temporary NABET-represented employees   You were unwilling to come up with alternative cost savings measures within the contract.  At our last meeting we told you that we would reduce the amount of contribution that NABET-represented employees would pay toward their health care coverage.  We have made these  changes and the changes will appear on their May 22 paychecks.  We also told you that as a result of these changes we will have to come up with other alternatives  within the contract to  reduce the more than $200,000 in benefit expenses  referenced in the attached table.  We are still hoping that you will decide to offer alternative suggestions for these savings.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

May 1, 2008

B U L L E T I N

LOCAL NO. 51 – SAN FRANCISCO
433 NATOMA STREET – SUITE 220
SAN FRANCISCO , CA 94103
TELEPHONE: (415) 398-3160
FAX:  (415) 398-3162

Email:  office@nabet51.org
logo

_________________________________________________________

Dear NABET Members,

Yesterday afternoon your committee met with NCPB's healthcare committee to offer our latest proposal regarding the two tier healthcare insurance premiums the company has insisted on establishing. Jeff continues to pitch this "unsettled period" as a difficult time with raising healthcare. What he doesn't want to say directly to you is this. KQED will unilaterally raise your contributions between 18% to 23% while his contributions and all of the other managers and non-union employees will go up half that much - 9% to 11.6%.  For the first time in over 50 years the union employees will pay more than everyone else in the building for healthcare. After having duped us in negotiations, it’s not right and it's not acceptable.  

You are supposed to feel good that he has made concessions in this process.  Remember he first told us that the Union employees’ contributions were increasing 100% to 200% on May 1st.   We all knew that was ridiculous and was made in retaliation.  Now we are suppose to feel good about paying twice what Jeff and every other non-union person with a family pays. 

I said in my first response to the members that this is about retribution because of your membership in a labor union. Unfortunately, nothing has changed. Someone in management has persuaded Jeff that if KQED can get its foot in the door by raising rates just a small amount this year only for NABET employees, that will be acceptable to most and as Jeff says, we can "provide closure on the premium issues". Nothing could be further from the truth.  KQED has made it clear to NABET leadership that it intends to boil this frog slowly. Once again, Jeff underestimates you.  He thinks by backing off a completely ridiculous, highly punitive increase, you will be grateful for his generosity and happily accept an 18 -23 percent increase and  paying twice as much as everyone else who isn’t union.

Next year Jeff will be back with another increase over what the non-union people will be paying until Union employees are paying what he had originally tried to implement.   

Now, let me tell you more about yesterday’s meeting. The Union proposed that we would accept their proposal of an 18% to 23% increase through April 30, 2009 with the understanding that the increases in 2009 and 2010 would be no greater than the increase that management and the non-union employees would pay for their healthcare.  KQED returned 5 minutes later to tell us that they appreciated our efforts, but our offer was rejected. We asked what would happen in five months when union employees would be faced with another increase that they could not afford.  Would those employees be able to change to a less expensive option?  They said that there would be no open enrollment allowed at that time.  The meeting ended with the Union advising them that the Union would take all necessary legal action, and the relationship was not going to be the same going forward.  They said they understood.

Ten minutes later we were summoned back to the meeting room where we were told they had modified their position and were agreeing to a portion of our proposal:  they were extending the new rates through April 30, 2009. We asked them to please reconsider the rest of our proposal:  keeping the 2009 and 2010 years as we had proposed, but that again was rejected. 

It continues to be clear to us that they fully intend to spread this 100-200-percent increase over the term of the contract. This has never been about the high cost of healthcare. It continues to be punitive.  It is about management trying to renege on an agreement to pay you the money that you earn and they agreed to pay over the course of this contract. 

In addition we have also said this short sighted decision will regrettably only hurt NCPB once it has been brought into the public light. 

I will keep you advised of any further developments.


Kevin Wilson 
President, 
NABET Local 51     

 

5/02/08

Dear Colleagues:

I’m writing to you today concerning the circumstances that led to an activity by NABET employees at the end of the work day yesterday.

As you are aware from earlier emails, every staff member – whether union, or not - at NCPB is seeing increased employee contributions to their medical premiums beginning with the new benefits period that commenced May 1, 2008. This increased contribution will appear on each employee’s May 22 paycheck

Last year, NCPB ratified a new union agreement with NABET. In this agreement there is a reference to a percentage requirement for contributions that NCPB must make toward NABET staff benefits. Unfortunately, as health care costs for all U.S. companies have spiraled out of control, management’s contribution has far exceeded the contractual requirements of the agreement. NCPB consulted with the union to find alternative cost-savings under the contract. The Union could not come up with suggestions for savings within the contract to offset this increase in the medical benefit premiums.  As a result, NCPB offered what we believe to be a reasonable alternative, i.e., to increase NABET staff medical premiums to help NCPB move toward the percentage amount required in the contract. 

NCPB management will continue to consult with NABET leadership in order to find a solution that adheres to the agreement and meets the long productive spirit of what it means to be an employee at KQED

We apologize if any non-NABET staff were put in an uncomfortable situation by the activity last evening.

Sincerely,
Jeff

 

 

From: Joanne Carder [mailto:jcarder@ncpb.com]
Sent: Wednesday, April 30, 2008 2:56 PM
To: NABET Members
Subject: FW: NABET Health Care Premiums Up-Date

 

April 30, 2008

 Dear NCPB NABET Colleagues,

 I am writing you today to provide an up-date on the issue that has arisen around NCPB's 2008-2009 health care benefits coverage year that begins tomorrow.  We want you to be able to plan for the time ahead productively without concerns about what you will be paying for your health care coverage this next year.  The information in this email is intended to provide closure on the premium issues that have been under discussion at the senior management level as well as with your leadership.

Our consultations with NABET management concerning union staff health care contributions continued yesterday at NCPB offices. Although the Union leadership did not offer sufficient cost-savings to address the problems outlined by NCPB management during our meetings, we do appreciate their understanding of the issue and its relation to both the contract and the economic environment NCPB operates in today.

After careful consideration, we have informed your leadership team that we would make the newly-established health care contribution structure sent to you earlier this week effective for the entire benefit period of May 1, 2008 – April 30, 2009. This means that your health care contributions will be frozen for the next benefit year and will not be adjusted beyond the 18% - 23% increased rates provided on the most recent table that we sent to you.  We made this decision because many of our NABET staff have come to us to express their desire to plan family or personal budgets for the entire year and asked us to find a solution that would not fluctuate in the coming months.  We informed your leadership team late yesterday of our decision to freeze your premium rates and seek cost savings under the contract in other ways.   

However, with this change NCPB is making a conscious decision to find cost savings under the contract that will help us rectify the imbalance identified around your benefits package.  We will do so as we move forward throughout the summer of FY2008 and during the FY2009 budget process so that the issue that came up this Open Enrollment cycle will not do so in the years ahead.

Thank you for your understanding and support during this unsettled period.

Cordially,

 Jeff

JEFF CLARKE