I’m not saying this is a bad deal. The highlights real looks pretty tempting for the majority, I am only objecting for a small part of our Department that is typically cast aside in the “Greater Good” mentality of trying to appease 11k+ members. I do agree with pers-able income staying the same or more, and our OT rate increasing to reflect that. What I am weary of is what are we loosing? Naturally the highlights real is the sales pitch, but we are definitely giving something up. I know there was a lot of concern with loosing Leave credit accrual but our monthly leave credits are determined by Cal HR, not the department or MOU. The leave credit earnings is the same no matter what state department you work for, Cal Fire, Cal Trans, CHP, Fish and game, etc. State Holidays are the same across the board so don’t be fooled that the outcome was from the bargaining team. I am eager to read the additional information before I can support or condemn the tentative agreement. Yes we as a union body are quick to condemn a governing body that only shows us the good and not the bad, It stands as tribute for people that have lost a fair amount of ground in years past but were told “its a good deal, and you wont like the other option, so vote yes and we will figure it out later”…
Any other worker in a state department works 40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year (2,080 hours) and gets 1 year state service credit, Calfire employees work 72 hours a week, 52 weeks a year(3,744 hours) and get 1 year service credit for it. So if I use that math for reasoning Calfire employees work 1.79 the hours of all other state departments for the same benefits and leave rates as the rest of the state departments. Just food for thought, if it came down too it Calfire employees should get 1.7 years service credit for every calendar years worked, as well as 1.7 the amount of leave credit earned every month. Now that would be a a contract worth fighting for. Before anybody chimes in and says that Calfire has the best retirement formula, legacy being 3%@50 (for the older generation at least). All the other state departments that are not fire or law enforcement pay into Social security and are eligible for full Social Security upon retirement.
If you run the presumable math. (Salary+24 hours at current or rate) and add the remaining 52 hours of FLSA (at the new rate) , it’ll be a few hundred extra monthly for FAE-BC. If we get the $260 health stipend back it would be even nicer. As of now for me, it’s only a little bit more to when we got the $260
I can agree that it’s heathy the ask the question of what we lost. My opinion is, just please don’t let anger or heavily weighed mistrust make us blind to weighing the benefits through an objective lens That’s all. I do hope this is a benefit to all BU 8 personnel. Obviously we won’t get everything, and the hope is what we gave up is worth the compromise.
Keep that thinking process up and the next negotiation with include sleep time hours. There’s a bug that will bite next!
Let’s be realistic, if the department ever tried to bring back NIRA or non compensated hours but held on duty in today’s progressive environment…it would be a disaster. Everybody I know and work side by side with will agree, if we are not getting paid, we are going home. Department recruitment would be void and stagnant and eventually the department would be non sustainable. Risk big win big,
Is the 2 year length to coinside with the rest of Gavy’s term?
I think the big win we haven’t discussed yet is the two year contract. I’m pretty sure cal hr were after a 5 year.
I don’t think any of the work centers have the housing to go on 24 hour shifts.
Some units have had to acquire off site rental housing for this situation. Seen it happen in several places for north ops.
We earn and burn leave on a 40 hour calculation. You take 3 days off on vacation or sick leave and it totals up to 40 hours of leave usage.
You’re correct in the calculation for service credit though, if you go hour for hour we get sorta hosed on that one. But call me crazy, I’d rather do this than be a program analyst in a cubicle for 40 hrs a week. Life choices.
Agreed, we are all drawn to this line of work for similar reasons beyond pay and benefits. It is truly a way of life and I would have it no other way, but it can be disheartening when one looks at the true cost of it all. Well stated, life choices
“The devil is in the details”
With the limited information that has been released, I am cautiously optimistic about the new agreement. Yes there are MANY, MANY unknowns that need to be vetted and discussed prior to a vote. But Financially, it appears to be a WIN for the membership. However, comparing “Apples to Apples” not all everyone comes out a winner.
Based on my own salery, it appears that I will receive an approx $350/month GS increase(salery + EDWC) while working 24hr less per PP. It also appears that I will get an approx $6.70 per hour increase in my OT rate. This increase is due to the way our salery and OT rate is calculated.
Salery ÷ 4.33 ÷ 53 = base Hourly rate × 1.5 = OT rate.
Having run some numbers for other salery, other ranks. It does appear the leas you make per month(lower ranks, lower steps) while you still get a raise. The raise doesn’t offset the loss in the $260/month medical payment we all received till June 30, 2024.
Once all of the information is released, take the time to educate yourself, read the current MOU, compare it to the proposed MOU.
EDUCATE YOURSELF. We as members are responsible for ourselves and education and understanding what is/is not in the new agreement will ultimately be the deciding factor.
Remember
THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAILS!
You have LG BCs making almost 2-3 a day on OT.
While ours make less a day than most LG FFs riding in the back seat. Very happy for the wage increase the DCs got. It was long time coming. Hopefully this contract closes the gap and makes it just as competitive to LG. I find it crazy our folks are making pennies on the dollar compare to most. From the BC level down everyone is massively underpaid.
I think this really only applies to the Bay Area and LA/Orange area. It’s definitely not apples to apples. The sticker price isn’t always the out the door cost! When you look at how much some of these LG departments pay into their benefits, a lot of them end up with less take home.
This is true. Many LG pay is to offset their medical cost, and some don’t receive that medical into retirement. It is daunting to educate ourselves about all the details. But it’s what we have to do. It’s our best way…to read, clarify, understand, and ask more questions. I urge you to ask mutiple reps those questions. Get perspective. Once you feel informed, cast your vote.
Longtime friend retired from LA City Fire after 30 years in 2002 with no medical coverage. Now paying over $850 month out of pocket for medical insurance.
Is any money the State contributes for your retirement fund PERS’able? In other words, when you retire, does that State contribution count as salary for retirement?
No, the state contribution funds the pot of money. PERS uses your contributions you have earned to pay your retirement when you retire. Once you have exhausted your contributions, the bigger pot funds your retirement.
