For Cuomo, labor pact seen as 'win-win'

ALBANY -- Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo yesterday settled the first major labor contract of the year with rare concessions including a pay freeze, elimination of automatic "step" increases and more payments by employees for their health care over the next three years.

Public employee union contract settlements often contain similar wage and benefit provisions and Cuomo said the agreement announced yesterday with Council 82, the New York Law Enforcement Officers Union, is a model for other, larger unions. The Civil Service Employees Association and Public Employees Federation, along with smaller unions representing state police and others, are still in negotiations.

Cuomo said if the remaining unions agree to similar terms, the state will save $450 million and avoid the 9,800 layoffs he has threatened, although the biggest unions yesterday showed no sign of taking a deal like Council 82 accepted.

Rank-and-file members of the 1,160-member Council 82 union representing State University of New York police, park police, environmental conservation officers and forest rangers must still ratify the tentative agreement. The deal includes no layoffs.

"This looks like a very good settlement," E.J. McMahon of the fiscally conservative Manhattan Institute said of Cuomo's first labor deal. "I think it's a win-win for him."

Previous union contracts have often included 3 percent or 4 percent raises and pension "sweeteners" while rarely requiring significant increases in employees' share of health care costs. McMahon said the deal approaches private sector benefits and could be an incentive for concessions by local government and school unions.

Under yesterday's Council 82 contract, workers would pay twice as much -- 20 percent -- of their health care expenses while those with family plans will pay 35 percent. The contract also creates a co-pay for inpatient care to encourage the use of less-expensive outpatient service. Co-pays will begin for emergency room visits, X-rays, laboratory work and other hospital services. Employees would also lose their discount for using services in their health network as well as pay a higher co-pay.

The other unions, still in negotiations, downplayed the deal.

"The Cuomo administration's agreement with Council 82 represents a settlement with a very small number of specific state law enforcement officers who haven't had a contract for six years," said Danny Donohue, president of the 66,000-member Civil Service Employees Association.

"The Council 82 agreement in no way sets the groundwork for our continuing negotiations," said Ken Brynien, president of the 56,000-member Public Employees Federation.

He said PEF has rejected a similar proposal because it would have cost an average member $10,000 a year in benefits and wages.

"We are willing to accept short-term hardships for what may very well be a short-term fiscal crisis," he said.