Laborers International Union of North America Local 630 representatives, Steward Jimmy Willis, Business Manager Ronnie Burris, attorney Andrew Bonderud and Steward Bruce Haley on the left negotiate with county Human Resources Director Jacqueline Martin, County Coordinator Wilbur Dean and county labor attorney Wayne Helsby.

By Terry Witt – Spotlight Senior Reporter

                Two public labor unions representing Levy County Commission employees countered the county’s proposal to give employees a $4,700 increase on their base pay over three years and asked for a $5,200 pay hike instead.

            The pay increase is to partially offset what employees would lose when they have to pay for health insurance premium increases in the future and partly a pure pay increase.

            The employee unions backed off their original demand that they would never agree to county’s plan to cap the board’s health insurance contributions at $10,000 annually per employee.

             The unions asked instead for the right to re-open negotiations on health insurance if employee premiums rose by 3 percent in the future. The county is currently offering to re-open negotiations if premiums increase by 7 percent.

            Wayne Helsby, labor attorney representing the county, said he wasn’t authorized to approve or disapprove the unions’ counter offers but he would get back with them after consulting with the county commission.

            “We’ll take a shot at it. We’ll do the best we can,” Helsby said.

            The county’s game plan for placing a cap on employee health insurance is to reduce impacts on their $89 million budget.

            Andrew Bonderud, an attorney representing Laborers International Union of North American Local 630, asked Helsby to give the union an answer by Dec. 18 in light of the upcoming holidays.

            The International Association of Firefighters (IAFF), which represents county paramedics, EMTs and firefighters, was represented at the bargaining session by attorney James F. Brantley, President Katy Graves and Vice President Chris Castleberry. LIUNA Local 630 was represented by Bonderud, Business Manager Ronnie Burris, Union Steward Jimmy Willis, Union Steward Bruce Haley and union representative Wes Zufall.

            The two unions had previously been staunchly opposed to the $10,000 cap on county health insurance contributions because it would have forced employees to absorb all future increases in insurance costs above the cap. Insurance costs are rising nationally. However, this year, Florida Blue didn’t raise health insurance rates for county employees.

            Burris said the union is aware that it will go back to the bargaining table in 2022 to negotiate a new labor contract with the county. The next two years will give the union an opportunity to see how much health insurance costs increase.

            Both unions are interested in the county commission’s relationship to a company known as Public Risk Management, which bills itself as a member-owned, self-insured not-for-profit organization that exists to meet the needs of Florida towns, cities and counties in the fields of property casualty and health insurance.

            The county’s response to a Spotlight public records request indicated the county commission paid health insurance premiums of $2,291,371 to PRM in 2018-19 and $8,474 for life insurance.

            Total premium costs for health and life were about $3 million for the county commission and its employees.

            The county indicated in its response to the public records request that PRM contracts with Florida Blue to provide employees with health insurance, but PRM does not use the Florida Blue name.

            The county said PRM played no role in advising the county to create a cap of $10,000 per employee for health insurance premium costs.

            It isn’t clear how PRM is paid for the services it provides to the Levy County Commission, since the county is part owner of PRM and County Coordinator Wilbur Dean serves on its board of directors.

            The county said PRM is not the county’s insurance broker and Florida Blue pays all health insurance claims. The county pays the premiums.

            Burris is concerned that the county isn’t using the competitive bidding process to secure a new health insurance contract every three to five years but relies instead on PRM to contract with Florida Blue.

            In the bargaining session, Bonderud said he received an email from Helsby saying the county was withdrawing its offer for a $10,000 cap and the $4,700 in pay raises over three years, but it turns out the county wasn’t withdrawing the offer after all. Helsby didn’t recall writing an email saying the county was withdrawing its offer until Bonderud read it to him. Helsby said the county commission hasn’t officially withdrawn its offer.

            Bonderud said the union wasn’t happy that the county gave a Dec. 27 deadline to make a decision on its offer. Helsby indicated there could be some flexibility in the deadline.

            “Here’s our latest offer. Take it or leave it. If you don’t take it, we don’t even need to see you back at the table,” Bonderud said after the bargaining session ended, summing up what he viewed as the county’s strategy. “It came pretty darn close to…”

            “An unfair labor practice,” Burris said, completing Bonderud’s sentence.

            “We’re interested in understanding a little bit more of what goes into the decision making process for health insurance coverage for the employees,” Bonderud added. “It seems to be there are a lot of things that don’t quite add up; the amount of claims that are paid out, the price of the premiums that the county pays; the lack of competitive bidding; we’d like to understand what’s driving that, so we’re going to do our homework to see what we can dig up.”

            Spotlight asked if Bonderud and Burris had figured out how PRM was paid for its services. Was there a percentage charge per employee or a flat fee per employee, or some other arrangement? Or is PRM providing its services free of charge to the county commission?

            “I don’t want to kick the hornet’s nest in the middle of this, but Wilbur (Dean) is on the board of PRM and it seems to me you can’t have two masters,” Bonderud responded. “What side of the transaction are you on; are you on the county side or are you on PRM’s side? Does that have anything to do with it? I’ll be interested in knowing and I think we will find out.”

            Bonderud said the union, would “love to see some flexibility,” by the county in considering its contract offer.

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Levy Board of County Commission public labor unions negotiations December 9, 2019; Posted December 9, 2019