In a last-minute effort to assuage City Council members' doubts about a proposed fire union contract, Omaha Mayor Jim Suttle announced an effort to revamp city employees' health coverage plans.
One day before the council was scheduled to vote on the contract — and take up several amendments to it — Suttle wrote a letter to council members Monday urging them to approve the original deal.
He also proposed a memorandum of understanding between his administration and the fire union requiring the parties to work toward the city having one health care plan for all city employees by Jan. 1, 2013.
The city currently has three plans covering existing employees and retirees; one for police, one for firefighters and one for civilian employees.
Some council members greeted Suttle's proposal with a tepid response Monday, saying they still couldn't support the contract in its current form.
Moving city employees to one health care plan has long been a goal of city administrators, but a Suttle spokeswoman said the latest proposal puts a deadline on those negotiations.
The mayor has established a health care task force made up of public and private sector representatives, as well as union members.
In a letter to the council, Suttle said he understands some council members' desire to ask for larger concessions from the fire union, particularly with regard to health care.
However, he said the shortfall in the police and fire pension fund had to be dealt with first.
The mayor has said the contract would end pension spiking and put the city's troubled police and fire pension fund on the path to solvency.
“We agree that health care is an important issue, and one that cannot wait until 2013 to be addressed,” Suttle wrote. “However, we also feel that solving the unfunded pension liability is of paramount importance.
“It would be unfortunate to see our cooperative efforts made through four years of negotiations wiped away,” he said.
Last week, council members Chris Jerram, Jean Stothert and Franklin Thompson offered several amendments to the fire contract.
Jerram's amendment aims to shorten the term of the contract — ending it in August 2012 instead of having the contract run through 2013 — and potentially raise health insurance premiums for future retired firefighters.
Jerram said he's pleased Suttle wants to deal with the health care matter but said he still can't support the contract as it's currently written.
“It's encouraging . . . but it's not going to change the outcome,” he said of his vote Tuesday.
Council member Pete Festersen, who will co-sponsor Jerram's amendment to shorten the contract's term, said he, too, appreciated Suttle's effort to address council concerns. However, he said a shorter contract term is essential to reworking city employees' health care.
“We've got to get to it before 2013,” he said. “Health care's a significant issue for the city.”
Representatives of both the fire union and the Suttle administration have said that any changes to the proposed agreement will kill the deal. Suttle has pledged to veto any changes.
Suttle's office said Monday that the memorandum of understanding would address council members' concerns and eliminate the need for amendments.
“The mayor is just trying to say ‘Look, we've got a lot to lose here,' ” said the mayor's spokeswoman, Aida Amoura.
World-Herald staff writer Matt Wynn contributed to this report.
Contact the writer: 402-444-1068, [email protected], twitter.com/perezjr
Copyright ©2011 Omaha World-Herald®. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or redistributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.
