Newly-elected state senator Matt Smith takes the oath of office in Harrisburg on Jan. 1.For the last two years, non-contract employees have contributed 10 percent of the cost of the insurance. This year, the rate was decreased to 7 percent. Recent agreements with the borough’s unions, with the police contract settled by arbitrators, set the contribution rate for union workers at 5 percent.
“The message we’re sending here is if you aren’t in a union, you don’t count,” said council member Kathy Coder after making a motion to prepare an amendment to the borough’s salary ordinance that would reduce the non-contract employees’ contribution rate to 5 percent. She said that this would encourage all employees to unionize.
Even at the 7 percent rate, noncontract employees will save about $400 this year on health insurance due to a switch in plans. With the new plan, employees pay no deductible and have no co-pays.
Regardless, the rate needs to be the same for all employees in order to be fair, said council member Jim Scisciani.
Mayor George Doscher said that the administrative employees had been promised by council that their contribution rate would be adjusted once agreements were reached with the unions. That assertion was disputed by council president Linda Woshner and member Susan Viscusi, both of whom said that no promises had been made and no council votes had been taken on that issue.
Doscher maintained that the adjustment was the result of a “general consensus of council.”
“Maybe nobody spoke it,” Doscher said. “Maybe by your silence it was assumed you agreed.”
Woshner said that it would cost the borough about $4,000 if the contribution rate is decreased to 5 percent.
Voting in favor of the motion to draft an amendment were Coder, Susan Viscusi, Frank Camello, Mark Helbling and Scisciani. Opposed were Woshner, Jim Viscusi and Jane Braunlich.
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