15 CIR 203 (2006) 

NEBRASKA COMMISSION OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS

Filed March 20, 2006 

APPEARANCES:

Before:  Judges Orr, Burger and Lindahl

ORR, J.

NATURE OF THE PROCEEDINGS:

   This action was brought by International Union of Operating Engineers, AFL-CIO, Local Union No. 571 (hereinafter, “Petitioner” or “ Union ”) pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 48-818. The Petitioner is the duly recognized collective bargaining representative for nine separate bargaining units of the County of Douglas (hereinafter, “Respondent” or “City”). The Petitioner seeks the resolution of an industrial dispute over wages and other terms and conditions of employment for the July 1, 2004 through June 30, 2005 contract year.

ARRAY:

The parties have seven array counties in common. These counties are: Dane County , WI ; Jackson County, MO; Lancaster County , NE ; Larimer County , CO ; Polk County , IA ; Ramsey County , MN ; and Sedgwick County , KS . Petitioner also argues for the addition of the City of Omaha, NE in the array. The Respondent argues that the City of Omaha is not comparable and should not be included in the array.

Neb. Rev. Stat. § 48-818 provides that the Commission may establish or alter the scale of wages, hours of labor, or conditions of employment, or any one or more of the same. The Industrial Relations Act requires that the Commission establish rates of pay and conditions of employment which are “comparable to the prevalent wage rates and conditions of employment.” The language of the Industrial Relations Act is extremely clear and concise. However, under the Act, the manner in which the Commission is to determine what is comparable to the prevailing wage rate is left for the most part to the discretion of the Commission. See Lincoln Fire Fighters Ass’n v. City of Lincoln , 198 Neb. 174, 252 N.W.2d 607 (1977). While the Industrial Relations Act does not define comparable nor specifically direct the Commission in the manner and process of its determination, the Commission has received some guidance from the Supreme Court. In Omaha Ass’n of Firefighters v. City of Omaha, 194 Neb. 436, 440-41, 231 N.W.2d 710, 713-14 (1975), the Supreme Court found that “a prevalent [sic] wage rate to be determined by the Court of Industrial Relations must almost invariably be determined after consideration of a combination of factors…. Under section 48-818, R.R.S. 1943, in selecting cities in reasonably similar labor markets for the purpose of comparison in arriving at comparable and prevalent wage rates the question is whether, as a matter of fact, the cities selected for comparison are sufficiently similar and have enough like characteristics or qualities to make comparison appropriate.”

The Supreme Court also stated in Crete Educ. Ass’n v. School Dist. of Crete, 193 Neb. 245, 255, 226 N.W.2d 752, 758-59 (1975):

 The Court of Industrial Relations should not be compelled to compare the same school districts in every case that comes before it involving the same school districts. The ultimate question is whether, as a matter of fact, the school districts selected for comparison are sufficiently similar to the subject district to fulfill the requirements of section 48-818, R.R.S. 1943. If they are then there is no room for complaint. We are not prepared to say that merely because one set of school districts was deemed adequate in one case, a different set of school districts would necessarily be inadequate in a different case, particularly where different evidence is adduced.  

The Supreme Court also found that its past opinion with regard to school districts was equally applicable with regard to other governmental subdivisions. See AFSCME Local 2088 v. County of Douglas , 208 Neb. 511, 304 N.W.2d 368 (1981). Local employers can be disregarded only when they are not comparable because they do not meet the requirements of § 48-818.

            The weight of the evidence presented in the instant case leans toward the exclusion of the City of Omaha as a non-comparable employer under § 48-818. The Petitioner acknowledged that the County has unique job classifications that do not match the City’s job classifications. Unlike the counties presented in the array, the City of Omaha does not assess property, record deeds, or have an election commission. Petitioner’s expert witness admitted that in many cases counties should not be compared to cities. Petitioner’s expert witness further admitted there were “absolutely some differences” between the City of Omaha and Douglas County . Douglas County employees report to elected department heads whereas City of Omaha employees do not report to elected officials. While the Commission is not determining any key classifications in this case, the City of Omaha has the fewest job matches of any of the array members. Out of approximately 140 jobs, City of Omaha has 32 job matches or about 23%. Generally speaking, the greater number of job matches the greater similarity of work and the more comparable a particular array member becomes to the subject entity.  The only evidence presented by the Petitioner to include the City of Omaha in the array was geographical proximity, size, and the fact that the Commission has included the City of Omaha in past cases. While it is clear that the City of Omaha is comparable in size and in proximity, the past inclusion of the City of Omaha in past arrays is not sufficient evidence to include the City of Omaha in the instant case. The Commission makes its array determination based upon the facts presented in each individual case. A party requesting the inclusion of a particular entity, therefore, must present adequate evidence to prove the comparability under § 48-818 of a non-agreed upon array member.  The weight of evidence in this case rests on the side of excluding the City of Omaha . Therefore, the City of Omaha will be excluded from the array. The array for this case will include: Dane County , WI ; Jackson County, MO; Lancaster County , NE ; Larimer County , CO ; Polk County , IA ; Ramsey County , MN ; and Sedgwick County , KS .

JOB DESCRIPTIONS:           

            The Petitioner and the Respondent agreed to the placement of all but three of the job matches. The three job matches in dispute are the VDT Operator I in the department of the Clerk of the District Court, the Auditor in the department of the County Clerk , and the Scanner Operator I in the department of the Register of Deeds.

VDT Operator I  

            The Petitioner argues that the VDT Operator I should be aligned with the Clerk Typist I to keep a natural progression within the department. The Petitioner further argues that the Clerk Typist I is the entry level position in this contract, and the VDT Operator I is a position requiring a slightly higher skill level. In order to keep the salary range for the Clerk Typist I below the salary range for the VDT Operator I, the positions were aligned so that the VDT Operator I would be making greater than 100% of the Clerk Typist I salary. However, the Respondent argues that the VDT Operator I should be compared with the Clerk Typist II to maintain the internal alignment and historical relationship between the VDT Operator I and II.

            According to Exhibit 73 and Exhibit 80, it appears that the Clerk Typist I is in the lower pay grade of 04 and the VDT Operator I is in a higher grade of G6. This is also evidenced by the fact that the Clerk Typist I is currently making $9.18 to $12.25 and the VDT Operator I is making $10.11 to $13.55, while the VDT Operator II and the Clerk Typist II are both making $11.20 to $14.97. If the Commission aligns the VDT Operator I  at 90% minimum and 91% maximum of the VDT Operator II salary (which is identical to the salary of the Clerk Typist II), then the VDT Operator I will be making less than the Clerk Typist I.  Currently, the Clerk Typist I appears to be in a lower pay grade than the VDT Operator I, so the VDT Operator I should not have a lower salary level than the Clerk Typist I, in order to maintain the current internal alignment.  Therefore, since we have no evidence as to how to determine a higher salary range for the VDT Operator I, we will align the positions of VDT Operator I and Clerk Typist I at an equal salary level.

Auditor  

            The Petitioner argues that the Auditor should be aligned with the Internal Audit Analyst to keep a natural progression and pay differential between the jobs. The Respondent argues that because the Auditor does not require a bachelor’s degree, the position should be aligned with an Accounts Payable Specialist in the County Clerk/Comptroller Department.

            The Internal Audit Analyst does require a bachelor’s degree, whereas the other two positions do not require a bachelor’s degree. Both the Accounts Payable Specialist and the Auditor are on similar pay grades and have almost identical duties and responsibilities. Based upon the job descriptions presented in Exhibits 75, 77 and 79, the Auditor aligns more appropriately with the Accounts Payable Specialist than with the Internal Audit Analyst. Therefore, the Commission will align the Auditor with the Accounts Payable Specialist.

Scanner Operator I  

The Petitioner argues that the Scanner Operator I in the Register of Deeds Department should be aligned with the Scanner Operator in the District Court rather than the Scanner/Microfilm Operator in the Department of Microfilm, because the Petitioner’s expert felt that having five array matches in the District Court was better than three array matches in the department of Microfilm. However, the Respondent argues that the Scanner Operator I should be aligned with the Scanner/Microfilm Operator in the Department of Microfilm because the job duties are similar and the pay grades are identical. The Respondent also argues that this alignment will maintain internal equity in the current job structure.

Currently, the Scanner/Microfilm Operator and the Scanner Operator I in the Register of Deeds Department have identical pay ranges: $11.20 to $14.97; whereas, the Scanner Operator in the District Court currently makes $9.18 to $12.25. Both the Scanner/Microfilm Operator and the Scanner Operator I perform similar duties according to Exhibits 74 and 76. Both job titles also have identical pay grades. Therefore, the Commission will compare the Scanner Operator I in the Register of Deeds Department to the Scanner/Microfilm Operator in the Microfilm Department.

WAGES OR BENEFITS:

Longevity Pay

            The Petitioner argues that the Commission should not determine the prevalancy of longevity pay because it is a wage and not a fringe benefit. The Petitioner states that in 1992 to 1993 the Department of Labor changed longevity pay from a fringe benefit to a wage for calculation comparisons. The Respondent argues that longevity pay has always been considered a fringe benefit under Commission law and is subject to the two-pronged analysis of first determining whether the benefit was prevalent and then determining the midpoint.

            In numerous cases since 1992 the Commission has considered longevity pay as a fringe benefit for the purposes of calculating comparability under § 48-818. See General Drivers & Helpers Union, Local No. 554 v. County of Douglas , 13 CIR 202 (1999), Nebraska Public Employees Union Local 251 v. Otoe County , 12 CIR 177 (1996), Lincoln Firefighters Ass’n Local 644 v. City of Lincoln , 12 CIR 248 (1997), American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, Local 1109 v. City of Grand Island, 13 CIR 1 (1997). The Commission will continue to consider longevity pay as a fringe benefit, subject to the two-pronged analysis.

            The prevalent practice in this case is to not provide longevity pay. Douglas County currently has a longevity pay plan and will eliminate this practice. The Respondent will be entitled to use this overpayment as an offset. See Table 1.

FRINGE BENEFITS:

Retirement – Employer Contribution

            According to Exhibit 29, Douglas County is currently contributing 5.5 % to the employees’ retirement plan. Although the Commission does not have jurisdiction over the pension plan of the employees to order a change in the pension plan, the Commission does have jurisdiction to offset favorable and unfavorable comparisons of current to prevalent when reaching its decision establishing wage rates. Douglas Cty. Health Dept. Emp. Ass’n v. Douglas Cty., 229 Neb. 301, 422 N.W.2d 28 (1998).

            Based upon the evidence presented in Exhibit 29 and excluding the numbers for the City of Omaha , the Commission finds that under the current pension plan the percentage contribution made to the plan by the County is 5.5%, and should be increased to 6.4%. The dollar value of the difference between the contributions made to the plan under the current plan during the contract year and the prevalent as found herein, shall be used in computing the fringe benefit offset. Therefore, Respondent is below the comparable in that it contributes 5.5% to the employee’s pension plan. It should increase its percentage of contribution to the pension plan from 5.5% to 6.4% for the entire year, only for the mathematical purpose of calculating an offset, using the increase in the fringe benefit as an offset to the total amount to be credited to the employees. See Table 2.

Health Insurance  

The Petitioner argues that the County pays less in dollars for premiums for health insurance than the other array counties. The Petitioner further argues that because the County pays less in dollars, the Commission should not order a percentage, but instead should consider the dollar amounts paid in premiums. The Respondent argues that the health insurance percentages paid by the Employer should be reduced.

The Commission has consistently found the prevalence of the array’s health insurance by comparing the percent of the premium to be paid by the employer and employee and not the actual dollar amounts. See IBEW, Local 1597 v. City of Gering, 15 CIR ___ (Issued November 3, 2005) and Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 24 v. City of Grand Island, 14 CIR 81 (2002). Therefore, the Respondent is above the comparable in that it pays 88% of the premium for family coverage, 88% of the premium for two-party coverage, and 97% of the premium for single coverage.  It should decrease its percentage of premium paid for family coverage to 80% for the entire year, decrease its percentage of premium paid for two-party coverage to 77% for the entire year, and decrease its percentage of premium paid for single coverage to 95% for the entire year. See Table 3.

Moot Fringe Benefits

            While the Commission is not deprived of jurisdiction to set wage rates after the end of the bargaining year in question, a dollar-for-dollar costing out of each benefit is not required where, as here, the contract year in dispute is already past, and the impossibility or impracticability of retroactively changing fringe benefits for an expired contract year is well recognized.  See Lincoln Fire Fighters v. City of Lincoln, 12 CIR 248 (1997), aff’d 253 Neb. 837, 572 N.W.2d 369 (1998). The Commission determines that the following fringe benefits are moot because the year in dispute is over; see General Drivers & Helpers Union Local 554 v. County of Gage, et. al., 14 CIR 170 (2003):

1)  Sick Leave – Number of Hours Earned Per Year;

2)  Sick Leave – Conversion Applied to Vacation and Converted to Cash;

3)  Sick leave – Cash Conversion upon Resignation, Dismissal, Retirement or Death;

4)  Sick leave – Family or Funeral Usage;

5)  Funeral leave;

6)  Vacation Leave Schedule;

7) Vacation Leave – Cash Conversion;

8) Holidays and Personal Days;

9) Holiday Compensation Rate and Call-Back;

10) Health Insurance – Major Medical, Deductible, and Percentage Copay;

11) Health Insurance – Prescription Drug Coverage;

12) Health Insurance – Stop-loss For Major Medical;

13) Health Insurance – Optical Care;

14) Dental Insurance – Employer Paid;

15) Dental Insurance – Part of the Overall Health Premium;

16) Life Insurance – Amount of Basic Coverage;

17) Overtime;

18) Work Time for Overtime;

19) Disability Plan;

20) Union Dues Check-off;

21) Work Out of Class;

22) Work Conditions – Contract/Bargaining Law;

23) Work Conditions – Highly Urban/Formal Pay;

24) Retirement Plan- Defined Benefit Provisions.

Management Prerogatives

            There are certain fringes which we believe are management prerogatives and we will not address the following in this Order:

1) Work Time – Scheduled Hours per Day;

2) Work Time – Scheduled Hours per Week.

Benefits Not Considered

The Commission shall continue to determine comparability of health insurance, dental insurance, and life insurance by comparing the percent of the premium to be paid by the employer and employee. See also Lincoln Firefighters Ass’n Local 644 v. City of Lincoln, 12 CIR 248, 265 (1997); General Drivers & Helpers Union Local 554 v. County of Gage , et. al, 14 CIR 170 (2003).

            The following benefits will not be considered according to the above rule: 

1)      Health Insurance − Monthly Premium;

2)      Dental Insurance − Dollar Cost for Employer;

3)      Dental Insurance Employee’s Monthly Cost;

4)      Life Insurance − Monthly Premium per Employee.

Comparable Fringe Benefits

The following fringe benefits shall remain unchanged because they are comparable:  

1) Vacation Accumulation – Respondent is comparable in that it allows the maximum accumulation of 240 carry-over vacation hours. It should maintain its maximum accumulation of vacation carry-over at 240 Hours. See Table 4;

2) Call-In Pay − Guaranteed Minimum 2 Hours Paid Time at 1.5 Rate;

3) Life Insurance − Percentage Paid by Employer;

4) Injured on Duty Pay − The Respondent will continue to not provide compensation for injured on duty pay.

Non-Comparable Benefits

The Commission makes the following findings as to non-comparable fringe benefits:

1) Shift Differential − The Respondent is not comparable in that it allows only $0.25 differential for 2^nd and 3^rd shift. It should increase the shift differential pay to $0.34 for the 2^nd and 3^rd shift. See Table 5 ;

2) Educational Assistance Plan − See Table 6.

3) Dental Insurance Percentage paid by Employer − The Respondent is not comparable in that it pays 93% of individual dental insurance premiums and 85% of family dental insurance premiums. It should decrease its percentages paid for dental insurance premiums for individual coverage from 93% to 81% and for dental insurance premiums for family coverage from 85% to 72%. See Table 7;

4) Retirement − Percentage Contribution by Employer − See above and see Table 2;

5) Health Insurance − Percentage Paid by Employer – See above and see Table 3.

6) Longevity Pay Plan- See above and see Table 1.

IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that for the fiscal year 2004-2005, the following shall be effective as of July 1, 2004:

1) The job position of VDT Operator I shall be compared to the job position of the Clerk Typist I.

2) The job position of Auditor shall be compared to the job position of Accounts Payable Specialist.

3) The job position of Scanner Operator I in the Register of Deeds Department shall be compared to the job position of the Scanner/Microfilm Operator in the Microfilm Department.

4) Petitioner’s wages for the fiscal year 2004-2005 shall be as follows:

JOB CLASSIFICATION                                      MIN                           MAX

General Classes

Accounting Clerk I                                                       $12.42                         $16.44

Accounting Clerk II                                                      $13.95                         $18.71

Accounting Clerk III                                                     $15.29                         $19.29

Administrative Assis.                                                 $15.40                         $19.74

Cashier                                                                        $10.95                         $15.49*

Clerk I                                                                           $  9.95                         $13.81

Clerk II                                                                        $12.10                         $16.08

Clerk III                                                                       $12.93                         $17.15

Clerk Typist I                                                               $10.82                         $14.76

Clerk Typist II                                                              $11.91                         $15.92

Executive Secretary                                                  $15.92                         $22.24

Receptionist/

Main Desk Receptionist                                           $10.39                         $14.00

Secretary I (Confidential Corr)                                  $11.27                         $15.15

Secretary II (Confidential)                                          $12.49                         $16.74

Secretary III (Confidential)                                         $13.81                         $18.52

VDT Operator I                                                           $10.82                         $14.76

VDT Operator II                                                          $11.91                         $15.92

County Assessor’s Office

Administrative Support Clerk                                        $13.48                         $18.42

Assessor Support Technician                                      $14.36                         $18.72

Asst. Mgr. GIS                                                                $22.33                         $29.21

CAD Technician I                                                         $15.04                         $20.24

CAD Technician II                                                         $18.53                         $24.94

GIS Support Technician                                               $16.22                         $20.67

Real Estate Appraiser Tech. I                                     $15.81                         $21.42

Real Estate Appraiser Tech. II                                    $17.38                         $23.67

Real Estate Lister                                                         $15.45                         $18.38

Real Estate Specialist                                                 $19.66                         $26.90

Tax Auditor                                                                    $18.47                         $24.78

County Clerk/Comptroller’s Office

Accountant II                                                               $19.03                         $25.91

Accountant III                                                              $19.64                         $26.92

Accountant IV                                                             $22.27                         $30.38

Accounts Payable Specialist                                   $13.91                         $18.70

Asst. Supvr.-Records                                                $15.94                         $21.14

Auditor                                                                        $13.91                         $18.70

Internal Audit Analyst                                                  $18.47                         $24.78

Oracle Function Lead                                                $23.16                         $32.18

Tax Control Admin.                                                     $22.27                         $30.38

Tax Control Clerk                                                        $14.39                         $19.30

Register of Deeds

Master Cashier                                                            $12.11                         $16.62

Real Estate Recorder                                                 $12.50                         $16.61

Scanner Operator I                                                      $11.87                         $16.11

Senior Real Estate Recorder                                    $15.32                         $20.35

Clerk of the District Court

Accounts Analyst I                                                       $13.12                         $17.38

Accounts Analyst II                                                      $13.41                         $18.29

Cashier-Child Support                                               $12.50                         $16.70

Cashier-Legal                                                              $12.50                         $16.70

Child Support Specialist I                                           $12.99                         $18.13

Comm. Intake Specialist                                             $11.55                         $15.36

Juvenile Court Clerk                                                     $11.55                         $15.36

Legal Clerk Typist-Writs                                              $13.81                         $18.11

Legal File Clerk                                                            $11.17                         $15.02

Program Specialist II                                                    $13.60                         $18.53

Records Specialist I                                                      $11.55                         $15.36

Scanner Operator                                                         $12.16                         $16.39

County Treasurer’s Office

Accounting Specialist I                                                $13.53                         $18.58

Accounting Specialist II                                                $15.52                         $20.41

Asst. Vehicle License Clerk                                        $  9.02                         $12.51

Customer Information Tech.                                        $12.95                         $17.77

Customer Service Specialist-Titles                            $13.40                         $18.74

Customer Service Technician                                     $12.57                         $16.86

Driver                                                                             $14.62                         $17.52

Inventory Control Technician                                        $14.85                         $19.57

Master Teller                                                                  $16.37                         $20.26

Property Tax Specialist                                                $12.91                         $18.95

Election Commissioner’s Office

Asst. Election Board Coord.                                         $12.59                         $16.97

Election Board & Resource Coord.                             $15.13                         $22.40

Election Specialist                                                         $14.46                         $19.43

Election Technician                                                       $12.59                         $16.97

Jury Coordinator                                                            $15.46                         $20.84

County Sheriff Civilian Employees

Civil Process Server I                                                   $14.05                         $18.38

Civil Process Server II                                                  $15.61                         $20.40

Civil Process Technician II                                           $14.05                         $18.38

Crime Scene Investigator I                                           $15.61                         $20.40

Crime Scene Investigator II                                          $17.34                         $22.67

Elevator Operator                                                         $10.64                         $13.28

Entrance Screening Officer                                         $13.05                         $17.26

Law Enforcement Technician I                                    $12.20                         $16.57

Law Enforcement Technician II                                   $14.97                         $20.35

Motor Vehicle Inspector                                               $10.33                         $13.54

Property & Evidence Technician                                $12.66                         $16.55

Property & Evidence Technician II                              $15.61                         $20.40

Security Officer                                                             $13.04                         $16.23

Security Technician                                                       $14.47                         $18.02

Technical Support Manager                                          $22.88                         $31.41

Convention Center/Visitor Bureau

Communications Coordinator                                       $18.04                         $24.12

Receptionist/Information Spec.                                    $10.39                         $14.00

Sr. Convention Sales Rep.                                            $16.37                         $22.71

Supervisor of Convention Sales                                   $18.08                         $25.07

Visitor Services Mgr/Film Comm.                                $16.37                         $22.71

Corrections Civilian Employees

Admin. Receptionist                                                      $10.39                         $14.00

Clerk III-Conf.                                                                  $12.93                         $17.15

Commissary Clerk                                                        $12.93                         $17.15

House Arrest Support Serv. Aide                                $13.51                         $18.98

Librarian                                                                         $18.76                         $26.10

Policy Administrator                                                      $22.00                         $29.66

Records Technician I                                                    $11.00                         $15.45

Records Technician II                                                   $12.17                         $17.09

Records Technician III                                                  $16.67                         $23.41

Staff & Acct. Coordinator                                            $16.67                         $23.41

Information Services

AS/400 Technical Project Manager                            $27.93                         $38.34

Asst. Data Entry Sup                                                    $17.52                         $23.02

Computer Operator                                                      $14.27                         $18.74

Cont. Clk/Data Entry Operator                                    $12.88                         $16.96

Info Center Spec.                                                         $17.72                         $22.60

LAN Administrator                                                       $23.37                         $30.57

Network Administrator                                                $23.37                         $30.57

Operations Technician                                               $17.72                         $22.60

Progammer Analyst                                                    $21.50                         $27.92

Senior Systems Analyst                                             $25.31                         $35.60

Shft Supr of Computer Op                                           $18.33                         $24.36

Systems Analyst                                                           $22.53                         $31.46

Technical Project Manager                                          $27.93                         $38.34

Voice Comm. Coordinator                                           $15.45                         $19.35

Veteran’s Services

Asst. Service Officer                                                     $17.96                         $19.64

Senior Asst. Service Officer                                         $20.72                         $24.96

Purchasing

Asst. Warehouse Supervisor                                       $14.37                         $19.60

Parts Room Clerk                                                         $11.69                         $15.50

Purchasing Specialist                                                  $14.37                         $19.60

Warehouse Worker                                                      $11.69                         $15.50

Community Services

Administrative Assistant                                                $18.36                         $28.26

Clinical Service Clerk                                                    $13.25                         $17.32

Patient Account Representative                                   $13.25                         $17.32

Social Services Technician I                                          $13.25                         $17.32

Social Services Technician II                                         $14.79                         $19.84

Microfilm

Microfilm Technician                                                     $12.63                         $16.61

Scanner/Microfilm Operator                                         $11.87                         $16.11

*Correct amount taken from Exhibit 42, page 5.

            5) The Respondent shall maintain its maximum accumulation of vacation carry-over at 240 Hours.

6) The Respondent shall maintain its call-in-pay at a guaranteed minimum of 2 Hours Paid Time at 1.5 Rate.

7) The Respondent shall maintain paying 100% of a life insurance policy.

8) The Respondent shall continue to not provide compensation for injured on duty pay.

9) The Respondent shall increase the shift differential pay to $0.34 for the 2^nd and 3^rd shift.

10) The Respondent shall provide an educational assistance program that pays between $700 and $1000 dollars for tuition.

11) The Respondent shall decrease its percentages of dental insurance premiums paid for individual coverage from 93% to 81% and for family dental coverage from 85% to 72%.

12) The Respondent shall increase its percentage of contribution to the pension plan from 5.5% to 6.4% for the entire year, only for the mathematical purpose of calculating an offset, using the increase in the fringe benefit as an offset to the total amount to be credited to the employees.

13) The Respondent shall decrease its percentage of health insurance premium paid for family coverage to 80% for the entire year, decrease its percentage of health insurance premium paid for two-party coverage to 77% for the entire year, and decrease its percentage of health insurance premium paid for single coverage to 95% for the entire year.

14) The Respondent shall eliminate its longevity pay plan.

15) The fringe benefit and wage offset, as found herein, shall be calculated on an individual employee basis. The Respondent shall determine the net lump sum overpayment or underpayment for the contract year for each employee. Any net lump sum underpayment for any employee shall be paid by the Respondent to each such employee, however, any employee reimbursement shall not exceed the amount of compensation owed to the employee from the Respondent.

16) Any adjustments in compensation resulting from this Order shall be paid in a single lump sum with the payroll checks issued next following the expiration of the Final Order’s time for appeal or sooner.

All other terms and conditions of employment are not affected by this Order.

For copies of the Tables, please contact the Clerk of the Commission of Industrial Relations, (402) 471-2934.