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Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

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Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 6th, 2003 @ 9:46PM (20 years ago)

I knew they would try this, don't take away our benefits!

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 7th, 2003 @ 1:02PM (20 years ago)

We knew this was going to happen. It is now that the Fop must make a stand against what is going on at city hall. If this cannot be resolved by the time this goes into effect then a meeting needs to be called to get a gameplan together. This will ultimately effect everyone on this dept. I have watched city hall TAKE-TAKE & Take. It is time to stop this way of thinking.

Richard Evans

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 7th, 2003 @ 1:58PM (20 years ago)

What is new....Metro Government in direct violation of FOP contract. They will always violate our contract until we can get something that will hold them accountable for their violations. What happens when we violate a rule or something in our contract? WE GET SUSPENDED. What happens to Jerry and his followers?.....nothing.

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 10th, 2003 @ 11:31AM (20 years ago)

C'mon folks...we are not giving Jerry's master plan a chance. You see, if he continues to honor a contract negotiated in good faith and agreed to by all parties...how is he going to have the money to pay for more soccer fields ($650,000), finance the cost of magnets and calendars for constituents, buy additional TV's and DVD burners to "keep up with the news" (you got me on that one), and any number of "projects" to inflate the ego of the man in charge of the "sixteenth largest city". Perhaps it's time for the Mayor, Deputy Mayors, and unsupportive Council members to strap on some kevlar, work in areas a sane person would not travel to in the day, much less night, put his or her life on the line daily for the community and do it for less pay than a Councilman's discretinary fund. Armed hostage situation? Go get'em Jerry...hope your insurance covers you!! I suppose Hazardous Duty Retirement is next on the agenda.

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 10th, 2003 @ 4:39PM (20 years ago)

It seems the Mayor thinks the insurance is unfair. Well then make it fair. Don't demean any of your employees by offering substantial health insurance. The FOP has had this health insurance for 20 years in Jefferson County and now all of a sudden when you bacame mayor it was too much??? BULL! There is an agreed upon contract and you are trying to break it.

You fought the Sheriff over the tax bills and lost, how much did that cost the taxpayers???? Now you are trying to fight the FOP and once again they are right because they have a contract, but that doesn't seem to matter to you does it? How about trying to do things the right way at the negotiation table instead of stabbing everyone in the back? How much will it cost us taxpayers to fight and have you lose another battle when common sense tells you you are wrong??

I am all for the Police having premium health insurance, because they risk their lives for us everyday. If you agreed to it in a contract then by God kepp your word. If other people don't think it's "fair" then tell them to work ahrd and bargain for something important like the FOP did. Who is giving you your legal advice?? The Three Stooges??

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 10th, 2003 @ 7:39PM (20 years ago)

If this is going to cost the City $500,000 additional dollars why doesn't Jerry stand behind his police force and donate the $100,000 that he is getting to decorate his office to help cover it. I know several officers who are working in conditions that most people would not be seen in. Holes in the walls, mode in the light fixtures, carpet that is nasty and when we asked when we could get the walls fixed and painted we were told probably about next spring. These plans have been around for 20 years and now as a result of merger they are being done away with. What happened to all the money merger was going to save us from not duplicating services? Is that being used for Jerry's office also? These plans were not taken away under the previous governments however they were a part of contract negotiations, apparently that doesn't mean squat now. Sign a contract in July, violate it in January, oh what the hell! If it is not available to the sanitation engineers then the police doen't need it either. Whats next Jerry?

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 10th, 2003 @ 11:14PM (20 years ago)

Among a people generally corrupt liberty cannot long exist.

-- Edmund Burke

This quote was at the top of your web page when I checked on. Pretty good considering it aptly describes Abramson's Government so far.

Let's see:

He laid of 128 people. But he hires 4 Deputy Mayors and 8 Cabinet Heads for a combined salary (with aides) of over 4million dollars. (Open Records)

He told all of his city employees that we needed to tighten our belts and forgoe raises this year. The Police Officer's Union only got a raise to make sure everyone was equal. Parity was the term. Nobody got a big raise except the Mayor's flunkies who automatically got a raise in July. I guess it was for all of the hard work they did writing pink slips to mimimum wage employees.

Lest we forget, he has spent a small fortune redecorating his office and adding a kitchen. The Kitchen alone was $140,000.00

I would be really interested in seeing just how much money he has blown this year already. He has lied to the public too many times. Now he wants to take away a good bennefit plan from the Police because it isn't fair to the other employees. I also understand that the former CountyPolice had these same plans for 20 years and nobody complained about it.

Mayor Abramson must really hate the Police. Apparently he thinks putting your life on the line isn't enough to worry about, you should worry about your families health as well while you are working.

What it boilds down to is that he is wrong to try and take something away that he agreed to and that has been put into a contract. What is also wrong is that he is more interested in short changing and stabbing his employees in the back rather than trying to figure out a way to get better bennefits for everyone.

Can't the new office furniture wait awhile so that families get the health bennefits they need Mr. Mayor?

Wouldn't you attract better workers to City Government if they knew they were going to get great bennefits? Wouldn't you keep the talent you have rather than see it leave for the private sector?

Get with the program Mr. Mayor. All of the smoke and mirror tricks can't hide the fact that when you are wrong, you go about it in a big way.

How much money was spent on the Tax Money quandry with Sheriff Aubrey?

How much of that are you trying to recap from your workers budgets to pay for your screw-ups? Did anyone lose their jobs over advising you about how to get the tax money revenues? Wasn't that one that you were sure you would win too?

A small worker bee in Metro Government

(I would sign my real name like some of the Police have done, but he has a habbit of getting rid of us non-essential types)

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 11th, 2003 @ 7:48AM (20 years ago)

What's the deal with Dem-o-crats and their insistent promotion of envy? Class envy, junk envy, et al. The rebuttal from the previous page shows the same old knee jerk reaction THEY always come up with. The statement says that only 5 percent of Americans get "free" health insurance. Based on my limited math skills that would be almost FOURTEEN million people. Two hundred thousand of those are definitely NOT PO-lice. Cut us some slack. The public always says "you guys are underpayed for the crap you have to deal with". We agree and "free", decent healthcare makes up for some of the heartache, gore, and rampant stupidity we deal with daily. When you have led life in a glass shell, been taught that everyone with money (except YOU and YOURS) are evil, and never truly WORKED one day in your life it shows!!!!!

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 11th, 2003 @ 8:31AM (20 years ago)

I can't believe nobody has yet to pick up on this. WHat the Mayor is propossing basically is a PAY CUT outside of the contract. Since when is that an accepted practice? If this happened at FOrd, GE or UPS they would already be locking the place up and having picket lines ot in front of the buildings. Thank God the Police can't strike, because the 16th Largest City in the United States (not America) would go to hell in a handbasket quickly without them.

God Bless Our Police, Firefighters and Soldiers. Without you the world would be a horrible place.

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 11th, 2003 @ 4:00PM (20 years ago)

Dear Abby

I have a problem. You see I have this boss that doesn't appreciate me. He is always nitpicking and micromanaging. He never seems happy with anythng me or any of my co-workers do. He constantly treats his employees like second class citizens and is always finding new ways to make them unhappy.

Lately in a time of low interest rates and rising revenues in the stock market he keeps telling everyone that the company is going broke. He spends money on his pet projects frivolously. (I personally think there is a lot of mismanagement going on with the books) We recently agreed to a contract that kept many of our bennefits but that did not provide a raise because he said we had to be team players and make the new company work. He promissed us that no more cuts would be neccesary and that we have a bright future ahead of us.

Less than a month after signing the contract he told one of his top supervisors that we have been using company equipment and now we are going to have to buy the used equipment that he always provided in the past.

His latest issue is that he is cutting bennefits to us and our families.

Doesn't he understand that the more he makes us miserable that the quality of work will deteriorate and that will reflect directly upon him? DOesn't he understand that in order to keep godd workers and make them productive that you make them happy and glad to come to work, not miserable?

Abby what can we do about this poor unsightful boss of ours? Is he in over his head? Has he lost touch with reality?

Signed: At a loss in Louisville

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 11th, 2003 @ 8:48PM (20 years ago)

As a Metro Goverment Employee who sees many of LMPD's officers on a daily basis in my job, I've come to a point where I've gone beyond being angry.

I'm saddened.

Saddened that the city would treat thier police officers in such a disrespectful manner such as this. I guess it's not enough for you to put your life in harms way daily, now you have to deal with costs in health care and limitations on your choices in heathcare plans. Something that you should not be dealing with in the first place!!!!!!

Please know that you have many people in Metro Goverment like myself who support the police 110% and will back you anyway we can..

Sincerely,

...

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 12th, 2003 @ 8:39AM (20 years ago)

I am also saddened by the events involving the Police and the Metro Goverment. How can the Polcie go to the table for a new contract when the Goverment is showing them they cannot be trusted or they will not act in good faith to abide by the contract. This is not only an issue for the Police but for every other union involved with Metro Goverment.

A couple of years ago, the old City Council passed a resolution supporting the workers, of one of our major companies, on their efforts to preserve their benifits and not have them reduced. Those employees had the right to strike so people would listen. The Police do not have this right. That is why they need support from everyone because their voice is limited.

Mr. Mayor, I know you or your staff read this site (or you should), Treat our Police, Fire and EMS workers fair. Abide by the contract you agreed to. If you feel it needs to be changed do it at the table during negotiations NOT from a back room. Stop violating contracts to make yourself look good and take some pride in the work and safety we all see our Police giving us.

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 12th, 2003 @ 8:08PM (20 years ago)

I just got through figuring my prescription costs under the BEST plan that is now being offered to the FOP. My prescriptions costs went from $324.00 a year now to over $1800.00 per year under Jerry's great plans that are now offered. I knew we were going to be messed over by this administration but not to the tune of a 460% increase. Thanks again mayor for a job well done violating our contract. Maybe you could have taken some of the $240,000 dollars you spent on remodeling your office to help pay some of my medical bills. By the way your asking all the unions to not ask for a raise in their next contract, DON"T BET ON IT!! with the way things are heading.

Richard Evans

LMPD employee

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 12th, 2003 @ 11:32PM (20 years ago)

Well, isn't everyone SHOCKED!! The higher-ups are going to screw us, huh? I for one am not at all surprised. In the words of our new legal advisor, Dennis Simms, "...we can do whatever we want to do, and that's what we're going to do." -This was his reply after being shown 3 LPD policies, and one contract article that had been violated in a disciplinary action. So, there you go. That's the mentality we're dealing with. Bend over. Again.

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 13th, 2003 @ 9:53AM (20 years ago)

OVER THIS FAIRNESS ISSUE OF THE POLICE HAVING A BETTER HEALTH POLICY OPTION VS. OTHER GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES

it needs to made known the insurance issue was NEGOTIATED between the government and fop, and that the fop (at that time lodge 14) decided to barter for better insurance in lieu of better pay raises.

the public needs to be made aware that this is NOT an issue of the police wanting to take and take all there is. the contract was a GIVE and TAKE agreement.

Abramson and his staff should stop attempting to villianize the police and acknowledge that the police made sacrifices for this health benefit.

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 14th, 2003 @ 12:13PM (20 years ago)

Having devoted 34 years of my life serving this community in the public safety arena, it is extremely disheartening to find my new Metro government failing to honor it's commitment to law enforcement. Specifically, I am referring to the removal of the Humana FOP KPP 400 and Anthem FOP Blue Access hospitalization plans as choices for sworn personnel. Both plans are mandated by the FOP contract. There are currently 577 members that are current participants of the two affected FOP plans. That is nearly half of the sworn law enforcement officers of the Louisville Metro Police Department!

To bring this to a personal level, it means a minimum of over a 600% increase in 1 of 13 prescription medicines for my family and an increase of over 1000% in the cost of the other 12. It means a 100% increase in my co-pay and in July 2004, I will be looking at a possible 3500% increase in my monthly premiums.

My wife and I are raising two grandchildren, ages 10 and 11. The ten-year old suffers from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, and is currently being tested for Bi-Polar Disorder. Having the current insurance plan, as mandated by contractual agreement, gave me the opportunity to give up all off-duty jobs and be at home more to help with an extremely difficult situation. These absurd increases will force me to once again seek off-duty employment just to pay for the medicine, premiums, and office visits.

Health Insurance Benefits - We Need Your Help!

November 17th, 2003 @ 2:55PM (20 years ago)

I am married to a Metro Police Officer, and have sent the following to my councilman, and the news channels. I work in the benefits industry, and have worked with enrollment period processing for many companies. The quotes are from the first arcticle on Wave3.comThere are many inconsistencies with Abramson's comments:

1. ?Mayor Jerry Abramson wrote a letter to Metro Council members Friday recommending the elimination of two premium health care plans for Louisville Metro Police? and ?Union leaders say they learned of the change earlier in the week.? Why were these two government entities just notified last week? The benefit books that are used for the Enrollment Period would have to be printed in advance, after negotiations would have taken place with the insurance carriers. Enrollment period planning is a time consuming process, and Mayor Abramson would have known about this change well in advance of his notifications last week. Changes of this magnitude should have been communicated to the affected employees as soon as the decision is made, not when the publications were being released for the enrollment period.

2. ?Dropping the two plans with the most extensive benefits should save taxpayers about a half-million dollars, Abramson said.? There are several key issues in this ONE statement. If the mayor were concerned with saving taxpayers money, why didn?t the Mayor or his representative try to negotiate raise some of the costs associated with the ?extensive benefits? rather than dropping the plan completely? For example, co-pays could have been raised by a certain percent. An action such as this would lower the city?s premiums on these plans by a significant amount, but keep the plans intact for the participants. In saving the ?taxpayers? about a ?half-million dollars?, what about the taxpayers on the police force? What about the spouses covered by the police plans who also pay city and county taxes? In saving the ?half-million dollars?, what cost is being placed on these taxpayers, both financial and emotional?

3. ?The mayor?s office?contends it can change health care options without the Metro Council?s approval as long as insurance still remains.? The options in questions are specifically listed in the Fraternal Order of Police?s contract with the City, making this action a direct violation of an agreement made since the merger of city and county government. And, while the merger stated that all contracts at the time of merger would be honored until it was time to negotiate new contracts, this is a ?New? contract that was negotiated just months ago.

4. ?(Chad) Carlton said the city warned union officers during summer contract talks that price increases could force changes to the plans.? Again, this action is a direct violation of an agreement made since the merger of city and county government. If this was a concern just months ago, it should have been addressed at that time, not after the contract was signed by city and FOP officials, making it a binding contract. Once this contract was signed, any changes to benefits would have to be addressed in the next contract negotiation period.

6. ??We offer bronze and silver, and they were offered gold,? Carlton said.? Police officers daily put their lives on the line for a community government that offers them little respect, paltry raises and limited benefits that are taken away slowly year after year. Pension funds have been eliminated, health plans have dwindled, and costs of non-health plans have risen higher than the salaries have been raised. To say that police are offered ?gold? is not only a misconception, but shows the lack of support that they receive from the administrative branch of the Metro government.

I finished with this quote: "Remember, in society there is a 'thin blue line between order and chaos'. It is because of that 'thin blue line' that we have a safe and prosperous 'sixteenth largest city'."