Nassau Corrections Officers to vote Aug. 31 on new contract

                                                                                    

COBA President Brian Sullivan explains proposed contract in a podcast

A proposed new labor agreement for Nassau County's Corrections Officers Benevolent Association -- which has been working without a contract since December 31, 2017 -- provides 18.36 percent in gains, including raises and survivor benefits, along with 3.6 percent in concessions, COBA president Brian Sullivan said in an online podcast.

COBA's board has approved the new deal and the union's more than 700 members are expected to vote Aug. 31 on whether to accept the terms of the proposed Memorandum of Agreement.

It must then be approved by the county legislature and then accepted by the Nassau Interim Finance authority, the county's financial control board.

Upon full ratification the deal calls for every member to received a $1,000 lump sum within 60 days.

As for as salary increases, the agreement calls for a series of 2 to 3 percent raises from 2020 through 2025;  2 percent on July 1, 2020; 2 percent on July 1, 2021; 2.5 percent on July 1 2022; 2.5 percent on July 2, 2023; 3 percent on July 1, 2024 and 3 percent on July 1, 2025.

But it also calls for annual health care contributions; the first 2 percent was due on Jan. 1, 2021.  

So, Sullivan said, members have six months of the first raise, then the health care contributions, which gives members "six months of a wash": then July 1, 2022 they receive the next salary increase and "you're off to the races after that."

He said NIFA is forcing all unions to accept similar terms.

"I know everyone is sick and tried of hearing about NIFA," Sullivan said. But he said, "They're not going to get out of here unless these contracts conform to 14.76 percent."

What's 14.76 percent? The cost to the county of the new contract over the old contract,  a number NIFA came up with "so the county doesn't go into the red again," Sullivan said.

In his podcast, Sullivan sells the deal as the best the union can hope for while NIFA remains in control.

Here are some figures from fact sheets distributed to members.

                                                                                    

Contracts for all of Nassau's five major unions expired on Dec. 31, 2017 just before then newly elected Democratic County Executive Laura Curran took office on Jan. 1,2018.

The Nassau Detective's Association and Superior Officers Association approved new contracts under Curran. 

The Police Benevolent Association rejected a Curran proposed deal, but Sullivan said he thinks that was more a result of internal PBA politics rather than the agreement itself.

Nassau's Civil Service Employees Association also is still without a new contract.

Sullivan said inflation--which is running over 8 percent right now -- was not a consideration in the new deal.

"You can’t negotiate a contract based on the inflation rate," Sullivan said.

If Congress flips political control and inflation goes down after the union negotiated a higher salary increase based in the inflation rate, "you’re not going to give that money back," he explained.

"Everything is costing us more, everything is costing the county more."

Here is the actual Memorandum of Understanding (unfortunately, the image was chopped up in copying.):