CSO News

Notes from the CSO Summit.

The Collective Bargaining Agreement, Article XIX, Section 19.101 provides for a retirement program that includes a defined benefit retirement pension, defined contribution 401(k) and a defined benefit retirement medical benefit plan. The recent Pension Protection ACT (PPA) of 2006 modified existing funding rules for all multi-employer defined benefit plans and imposes requirements of corrective action for under-funded plans. Under PPA, a multi-employer plan is considered to be endangered status if it is less than 80% funded (or projected within the next six years) with an accumulated funding deficiency. The implementations of these new requirements is effective in 2008. Required corrective actions are swift and could be an increase in contributions, modifications of the benefit or a combination of both. Let’s be clear about this, the legislation was promoted by the then Republican majority and intended to eliminate workers’ defined pensions. Our current pension plan is not in funding jeopardy to pay out existing and future benefits. We are now being required to have a higher level of funding for the liability.

The CSO Representative Council spent time in July developing and reaffirming the direction of the union. During the September Council Meeting, representatives unanimously voted to commit to an organizing framework that promotes organizing as a culture within CSO. This culture based on the union tenet of relational organizing, will move us in a direction of achieving parity with the employer, while enabling us to deal with priority issues for our members, such as staffing and workload. Council brothers and sisters will be scheduling house meetings in the Fall. These house meetings will be the first step to assess (Plan-Act-Evaluate) our views on what constitutes an organizing culture while revisiting the Core Values and Code of Conduct.

On January 31, 2006, Sister Norma Potter was told by the President of CNTA, John Davis, that the Executive Board had a stealth meeting the night before and no longer wanted her assigned to the UniServ. The leadership of CNTA violated every tenet of basic unionism we value and promote on a daily basis. Absent due process or just cause, the local then proceeded to change the locks on the office. This type of egregious behavior would never be tolerated by any self respecting union. CSO moved into action quickly by informing the CNTA membership of their own locals’ behavior. The actions taken were necessary, not only to share the injustice imposed upon a CSO member, but to send a message to all local UniServs acting in the capacity as management that this type of anti-union behavior will not be tolerated. Our quick steps became even more needed as time passed and CTA did nothing. Ironically, prior to this, both CTA management and leadership approached me to ask what actions CSO was going to take and offered encouragement. In other words, “please carry our water”.