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CSEA members OK new state contract
BY BOB CONNER Gazette Reporter

    The membership of the Civil Service Employees Association has ratified a four-year labor contract with the state of New York.
    The vote was 29,755 in favor to 1,839 against, the CSEA announced Friday.
    The contract includes a 3 percent raise retroactive to April 2007, additional 3 percent raises in April 2008 and 2009, and a 4 percent raise in 2010. Increased longevity payments and upward salary adjustments for downstate workers also are included.
    The union said it also got health benefit enhancements, but had to accept higher co-payments.
    The contract covers more than 70,000 state employees. It still must be approved by the state Legislature and signed by Gov. Eliot Spitzer, both of which are likely to happen.
    Meanwhile, United University Professions, the union representing 34,000 state university employees, hopes to send out ratification ballots in late January, said UUP spokesman Don Feldstein.
    UUP has reached a tentative contract settlement with the state on terms similar to CSEA’s. Feldstein said the union’s negotiations committee will meet next week. If, as expected, it recommends ratification, a full copy of the proposed contract will be sent to each member, and UUP representatives will visit the union’s chapters around the state to answer questions and provide explanations.
    Feldstein said he is not aware of any organized opposition to ratification. The balloting process will take about three weeks, he said. The last UUP contract four years ago was ratifi ed by a membership vote of about 95 percent in favor, Feldstein said.
    Other state-worker unions that have not yet announced agreements include the Public Employees Federation and various corrections and law enforcement unions. The PEF Web site indicates that negotiations are going well.
    State Budget Division spokesman Jeff Gordon said $1.2 billion was included in the midyear budget update for “multiyear risks” including these negotiated raises. That set-aside contributes to the state’s projected $4.3 billion defi cit in the next fiscal year, he said.
    Spitzer is supposed to propose a balanced budget this month, and the Legislature is supposed to pass one by April 1, although it is usually late and is widely expected to be late again this year.

they should get as much of a raise as Stratton got.  Using the percentages the employees got year by year and then applying those same percentages to stratton's old salary, Stratton got about $10,000 more.

Oh, woops, wrong level of goverment

But it looks like the state is going to make out on this one.  By the time it's all approved by the legislature and the governor, they won't be getting their "retroactive check" til probably April, and you know what happens with such checks, the state takes a huge deduction in taxes, federal does too, so that 3 percent will probably end up being 2 percent.  Not to mention increases in insurances and stuff that reduce the net increase, just like social security retirees suffer

This is how it works with private sector jobs too. After taxes and the REAL cost of living, the raise is less than proposed.

Now they can all breathe easier and get down to work.....