Anyone else in bargaining right now?

We started negotiations in January. Since we're state employees and there's now a Democratic governor, management appears to be taking a softer stance than last time. Still, they're trying to chip away at our benefits.

They want to remove the language that caps our health copays at $250 annually. We're arguing that to remove the copay cap is equivalent to no insurance at all, since all costs could theoretically be transferred to copays, effectively eliminating our coverage. I think they were trying to slip this in under the radar, and they do have a point -- it's going to be harder to get our membership fired up over this as opposed to what management usually does, which is to propose an increase in our share of the premiums.

Are copay caps a standard part of most contracts?

Who else has bargaining stories?

Ours expires Dec 31, 2008. It won't be pretty.Under state law we public employees can't strike. IF we can't reach an agreement on a contract, we have to go to a State of Nebraska board. Both parties have to hire a consultant to survey cities outside Nebraska that are withing a certain distance and similar populations. We are then placed near the middle of the pack by that commission. It sucks.

about not being able to strike. I think there's some kind of process like you describe where it goes to an outside agency if we can't reach agreement, but I'm not aware of that ever happening. Most of the old contract remains in force until we reach agreement on a new one. Except for important parts like raises, of course.

As university teachers and researchers, we're able to do things that look a lot like a strike, but don't actually involve a decision by the union to stop work. For example, we can go work-to-rule and picket when we're not in class. Teaching assistants can decide to have class outside (i.e. on a picket line) and are protected by academic freedom. Last time around, a single day of targeted strike-like activity went a long way toward securing a new contract.

It's just difficult to have to use "guerilla" tactics all the time, since state law doesn't give us much real protection.

...by April 6, we strike the California State University. California Faculty Association.

My understanding is that things are looking up for a last minute settlement, which is both good and bad. It's good because no one really wants to strike if they don't have to and our bargaining team is playing hardball, so I'm confident any settlement will be a good contract. It's bad, sort of, because the CSU administration has pushed the union harder and harder during each of the last several contract cycles, and made the negotiations more and more rancorous and difficult. I think future bargaining would benefit by a show of force and solidarity.

But on the other hand, I'll be happy if we just get a good contract.