News From OSA - February, 2012

Tier 6. Our governor is earning a lot of points with Wall Street. Governor Cuomo wants to cut pensions for new employees, or to offer them a 401K instead of a pension. In return, MLC Chairperson Harry Nespoli has asked us to call Albany to tell them of our displeasure. A flyer with talking points can be downloaded by clicking on this link. An article from the civil service newspaper The Chief which outlines just how bad Tier 6 would be can be downloaded by clicking this link. Please read the material and make the calls.

More Civil Service "Deform." The governor has also asked for a loosening of civil service rules so he can appoint his friends and supporters to the best paying jobs in the state civil service. None of this is good news, but we have heard it all before. The governor is not as honest as G.W. Plunkitt (of “Plunkitt of Tammany Hall,”) but his goals are the same. If any of our members do not know of G.W. Plunkitt, our union provides copies of his amusing biography at general membership meetings. Attend in March; ask and you will receive.

You've Got Mail. Our response to the attacks upon us is to organize, lobby and argue our case with the public and the legislature. As a part of our internal organizing, we are creating an expanded database that will make use of members’ personal e-mail addresses. Please note that office e-mail accounts belong to your Agency and not to you. OSA has already defended over one hundred of our members who were brought up on charges for misuse of Agency e-mail. In almost all cases, the penalty was only a reprimand, but the message is clear. Please complete the form you can download at this link, complete it and return it to the union office.

Dental Benefits Expand. There is also some good news. In spite of all the threats being leveled against us, life goes on and costs rise. The OSA Welfare Fund has generally matched the Management Benefits Fund’s benefits, although not always. At present, our fund reimburses up to $3,000 in dental costs per member or per dependent. The MBF did provide $2,500 for the same benefit, but has just now increased the amount to $4,000. That’s nice.

The OSA Welfare Fund Trustees immediately voted to increase our limit to match theirs, effective the start of our Dental year, July 1st. We are also increasing the lifetime limit for orthodontic work to $4,000, effective the same date. Members who might now be approaching the $3,000 cap should note the increased limit after 7/1/12 and schedule further treatments so as to minimize out-of-pocket expenditures.

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