Bill as I understand it some of the employees of the SSD did accept the HMO and even with that the premium paid by the employee just about doubled ... which could be the reason that Rosemary was looking for a long term fix to the problem rather than a one year relief which in the end is all the HMO was for those employees who elected to go with it.

I think it's time for the Scranton School District to move away from BC/BS and look for an insurance that is comperable yet more affordable to all of the employees.

As I read the article this morning they have Teacher Aides who are at top rate of $24,000 per year so a hit of $7,000 for them is quite incredible. Now the newer Aides would not be at that yearly salary ... so it's even a harder hit for them.

And believe me I understand what you are saying ... but Rosemary would not even present this to the membership of the SFT ... so the teachers can not be blamed for this nor can the Paraprofessionals (Aides). They were not afforded the opportunity to opt into the HMO.

A bit excessive? It's criminal! Just because you have low end benefits, don't drag everyone else down. The teachers were bamboozled in the last contract. The past president jumped ship after an unethical process of getting the contract passed.
The teachers should strike. The administration keeps creating jobs and handing themselves raises while they want to crucify the teachers and more disgusting, the non teachers. Those poor people are getting killed. Until the federal or state government gets a handle on this crisis, people need to fight, march and strike.
Teachers in our district are leaving and replacements are non exsistant. They need to find solutions and soon. Solutions, not meaning, making it unaffordable to work in the district. That's not a solution, that's prolonging the problem.

::: ...and I'll seriously consider pulling my childfrom the schools and sending him to Catholic school. :::

c'mon over here and sit with me for a minute

Only have three things to say STRIKE STRIKE STRTIKE.

sharilewis wrote:

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A bit excessive? It's criminal! Just because you have low end benefits, don't drag everyone else down. The teachers were bamboozled in the last contract. The past president jumped ship after an unethical process of getting the contract passed.
The teachers should strike. The administration keeps creating jobs and handing themselves raises while they want to crucify the teachers and more disgusting, the non teachers. Those poor people are getting killed. Until the federal or state government gets a handle on this crisis, people need to fight, march and strike.
Teachers in our district are leaving and replacements are non exsistant. They need to find solutions and soon. Solutions, not meaning, making it unaffordable to work in the district. That's not a solution, that's prolonging the problem.

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Unions are outdated, in my opinion. Those teachers aren't stuck working in the coal mines. If the benefits and pay are better elsewhere, then I say don't let door hit you where the good Lord split you. There are plenty of teachers without the connections to land a full time teaching job that would be happy to take their jobs...and I would be happy to see someone like Rosemary Boland, who has no business dealing with children for a living, leaving this school district.

Anyways, I look at the teachers' parking lot at my kids' school, and it doesn't appear that any of them are starving. I don't see any junkers parked there. But I do see some nice new SUV's and even a few BMW's and Mercedes. My heart bleeds for them.

TaylorPines wrote:

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The teachers will get everything they deserve

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Everything they deserve? In my opinon that would be their walking papers if they don't wise up and stop their ridiculous demands for top-of-the-line Cadillac Blue Cross/Blue Shield health insurance. They need to come back to the real world. And that doesn't just apply to Scranton teachers....its PA teachers in general.

Like I said, if they don't like it, there are plenty of teachers who aren't politically connected who need a job and would be happy to replace them.

To follow up on my earlier post I have the total cost for my family health insurance for 2006. $11,200 total, $1,080 paid by me for a BC/BS HMO plan that is not unreasonable. Vision and dental are listed as a seperate cost and not included in this price. Of course there are co-pays for doctor visits and prescriptions but if the typical taxpayer has to deal with it then I think its fair to expect teacher to also. I will reserve judgement on a teachers strike until I have information on the total cost of the health care. Well thanks for listening and I apologize for the earlier inaccurate estimate.

Aga, the numbers you list indicate that costs are rising for the district healthcare dramatically. Thank you for posting them, however, as a taxpayer I am also interested in the figures that the district pays. To be fair you have to consider the total cost. My employer pays over 90% of my costs and perhaps the district should do the same for the teachers if the plan they choose is in line with private ind. standards.

I have nothing but the highest regards for the teachers I have had the pleasure of dealing with for the four years my oldest has been enrolled in the S.S.D.

For teachers and for Administrators the cap is on the year 1999 I believe it may be on 1998 ... and for the others the cap is on the year 2000. The employees are responsible to pay for any increases in cost that occurs after those years ... so an end to this madness will never stop ... as the insurance premiums soar so does the amount of co-pay for the employees.

Everyone is under the assumption that the employees of the SSD teachers, aides, secretaries, maintenance all have what they like to refer to as the "Cadillac Plan" with BC/BS ... but that is not true .... those who have Traditional BC really pay a huge amount of money for it ... For a Family plan of traditional BC/BS in 2006 ... the employee was responsible for paying $346.69 (dental being a separate plan) per pay ... that's every 2 weeks ... 26 times per year. Now I don't know about all of you but I feel that is excessive .... and that was the amount being paid in the year 2006 ... so you can only imagine what it is now ... So I know what you are thinking ... go to the PPO ... well the PPO is available and that is what most people have and in the year 2006 the cost (again dental being separate) for the PPO is $224.88 for a family plan per pay ... still excessive don't you think?

Can there be a savings to the employee by moving to an HMO ... yes ... but for how long ... when we moved from traditional to the PPO the saving were only realized for the first 2 years and then we were right back in the same boat ... so I hope you understand that it really isn't the fact of the HMO ... it's wanting to get a grip on the entire situation ... it is my understanding that those who were able to go to the HMO for considerable savings last year .... are now seeing the employee's share of the cost doubling ... so what did that do for anyone who took it ... they are right back where they were when they made the move to the HMO although it's not as severe as the costs for those who retain traditional and PPO ... but it's a hit none the less.

The district does not pay 90% of the costs ... because if they do then what it costs for BC/BS is criminal.

Yearly to an employee in 2006 for traditional = $9,013.94
Yearly to an employee in 2006 for PPO = $5,846.88

Add to thatan additional$448.00 per year for dental for the family ... OUCH!

Do I think there should be a strike ... No I am not a fan of striking ... nobody wins ... but what I do think is this ... that it is time for the District to look for other insurance plans that are more affordable ... BC/BS is not affordable any longer. It is time to aggressively begin seeking other insurance ... and just because there is a company named in a contract ... well the district and the union can always do a memorandum of understanding and attach it as an addendum to change one particulararticle inthe contractand this should be done as quickly as possible.

-- Edited by LusOnlyVoice at 10:08, 2007-12-29

Lus,

The board must MAKE the administration change/fix the healthcare. If they do not, you will be on strike and the board members who do not make it happen will end their political careers.
You teachers stick together and stick with the board members who try to assist in fixing this major problem. It will end in time or heads will roll. In the end you will win.
And don't listen to the fools who'll say "I don't have it, so they shouldn't either". Those people are in the minority and idiots. The vast majority of the taxpayers know what you're paying is a crime. Fight it and fix it.

I like Paul's question best. Will Janet Evans show her support for her union and walk a picket line during an election year. If she does, I say she does it during the "no cameras around shift," and quickly retires to her car or other shelter before she's approached by the media. No way she comments on TV or in print.

If spring rolls around and Scranton teachers are still on strike she's political toast.

For comparison sake I have a link from the Times Leader with costs for insuring Nanticoke municipal employees.

http://www.timesleader.com/news/20080103_03Nanti_contracts_ART.html

"The city allocated $69,171 in the 2008 budget to pay for the insurance premium costs for the seven public works department employees, $102,082 to pay insurance costs for the citys nine full-time firefighters and $197,519 to pay insurance costs to cover the citys 12 police officers. "

To understand what is fair you need to have a basis of what insurance costs elsewhere. This is a start although I wish they had included more detail such as dental, etc.


Edited to make a clickable link

-- Edited by LusOnlyVoice at 15:33, 2008-01-03