Benefits Bill Paves Way for Union Contracts in Morris Twp.

Four unions representing Morris Township's public employees have contracts for the first time since the end of 2009.

Mayor H. Scott Rosenbush said ongoing contract negotiations made new progress after Gov. Chris Christie signed that, among other things, dictates how much public employees will pay into their healthcare for four years after any existing contracts expire. That matter is normally decided locally.

Pay-ins vary by salary level and coverage under the new legislation, but it ultimately requires employees to pay at least 1.5 percent of their salaries toward their premiums.

"Once that was literally taken off the table on the local level, it was no longer a sticking point and allowed us to resolve the remaining issues fairly quickly," Rosenbush said.

But he also said pay increases under the new contracts could be largely negated by the legislation, which steps up the amount public employees must pay toward their pensions and their health plans.

The Morris Township Committee approved contracts for the following four unions at its July 20 meeting:

• The Firefighters' Mutual Benevolent Association, representing fire department employees.
• The International Brotherhood of Teamsters, representing employees working in roads, sanitation, sewer and parks.
• The Police Benevolent Association that represents patrol officers.
• The Police Benevolent Association that represents superior officers.

One other union, Council Six, represents white collar public employees in the township, but it has a contract that extends through the end of 2011.

According to township administrator Timothy Quinn, the broad strokes of the four contracts are identical. They are all retroactive, they provide no raises for 2010 and the give 2 percent raises in each year from 2011 to 2013. The contracts further require all employees to take part in the state's Direct 15 Health Plan, which will require higher deductibles and co-pays.

Rosenbush said the contracts were "very acceptable to the township."

"We are appreciative that they met with us proactively and cooperatively and that we were able to hammer out an agreement," he said.

The mayor said that the change in the choice of health plan alone will save the township about $800 per employee.

"We are in a state health benefits plan (Direct 10) and we've moved to a slightly less expensive base plan (Direct 15). If an employee wants to buy a more expensive plan, they can get a higher level of coverage," Rosenbush said.

The mayor could not provide the exact percentage of salary that Morris Township employees pay because "it's not calculated that way." Since 1992, he said, employees had split with the township any increases in dental and prescription costs. "Under the new contracts the employee contribution levels will be determined by the recently signed legislation and will be implemented when the law goes into effect–allowing time for open enrollment, etc.," Rosenbush said.

Rosenbush said Morris Township employees have contributed more toward their healthcare than most in the state for nearly two decades.

"In fact, when the state mandated that they should pay [at least] 1.5 percent [of their salaries toward health benefits], most of the people in Morris Township were not affected because they were already paying more than that," Rosenbush said.

Patch has been unable to contact representatives of the four affected unions. If you are a member of one of the unions and would like to discuss the contracts, or would be interested in submitting a letter to the editor or guest column on the subject, please e-mail Kathy.Shaskan@Patch.com.