From our President
“Since 1982 our diverse group of Union members, from a variety of public service jobs have stood shoulder to shoulder to fight for collective bargaining rights, our contract, job security, living wages, health insurance, and retirement security. We have witnessed ordinary people accomplish the extraordinary through solidarity, hard work and persistence. For us, it has always been about our families and our children. It is with great pride that we see so many of our children being the first in their family history to attend and graduate from college. We will continue to organize our members, and mentor new leaders to continue the fight and ensure that future generations have the same quality of life for their families.”
-Carl Chisem, President MEUI
COMMON LABOR TERMS
This section's goal is to help you understand some labor terms that are commonly used.
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Collective Bargaining Agreement – This is the contract that is negotiated and agreed to by your union representatives and management. All of your workplace rights and conditions of employment are contained within your collective bargaining agreement. The collective bargaining agreement is the most important document to each and every member.
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Interest Arbitration – A neutral third-party is used when there is a dispute between the two parties during the collective bargaining process and will issue a decision to resolve the issue. This decision is binding and both sides have to agree to live with the decision that was made.
Arbitration Award – This is a binding decision that an arbiter issues to resolve a dispute.
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Management Rights – In the collective bargaining agreement there is a section that outlines management rights. This is in every contract and outlines what management can and cannot do within the guidelines of the contract.
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Union Recognition – This part of the collective bargaining agreement outlines who has representation from the union.
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Mediation – This is often the step used before going to arbitration in an effort to reduce the amount of issues that there are differences over. A neutral third-party will help mediate the differences so that management and the union can come to an agreement.
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Grievance – A process that allows you to address issues or complaints that come up in the workplace.
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Grievance Arbitration – A final resolution to a grievance filed. A neutral third-party will interpret the collective bargaining agreement and decide if it has been violated or not.
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MERA – MERA stands for the Municipal Employees Relations Act and was enacted in 1965 to cover municipal employees. It can be found by clicking here.
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Weingarten Rights – This protects an employees right to union representation during an investigatory interview. The employee must request to have a union representative and the supervisor has to grant a union representative to the employee or they have committed an unfair labor practice.
WORKERS' COMPENSATION SERVICES
We are well versed in Workers’ Compensation laws and procedures. Please understand that the Union is not notified when you are injured, nor do we know unless you tell us. If you have been injured on the job, contact our Workers’ Compensation Staff Representative Tammi Atkins. She can be reached at (860) 343-8724 or via e-mail at tatkins@ceui.org and she will assist you in receiving prompt payments and benefits.
It is very important that employees who are injured, or who suspect they have been injured or have contracted a disease on the job, take immediate steps to protect their rights and to ensure their claim is processed properly.
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If you are injured on the job, you should immediately:
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Notify your supervisor of the incident (and give the supervisor the names of any witnesses) at your first opportunity—don’t delay.
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Seek immediate medical treatment if time is of the essence or if it is an emergency. This is important to establish your claim. Don’t lapse in treatment for non-emergency.
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Fill out a First Report of Injury form—no matter if the injury is severe or minor, your injury needs to be documented. You should ask for and read the report promptly to ensure accuracy.
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Be sure to get and save a copy of the incident report.
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Your supervisor should send you for immediate medical treatment or diagnosis if not already done.
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Be sure to check with your supervisor to make sure that the physician who will be treating you regarding your claim is in the Workers’ Compensation network. Insured workers can only be treated by physicians in the CT Workers’ Compensation network, who should have the necessary forms in their offices. These forms are needed for prompt processing through the Workers Comp system. Failure to seek medical treatment with a Workers’ Compensation network doctor may cause delay in processing of your claim and denial of your benefits.
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File a Form 30-C to substantiate your claim.
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You should also notify your workplace steward of your injury and give them all of the information. If you do not have a workplace steward, please contact your staff representative at the Union.
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Failure to seek medical treatment with a Workers’ Compensation network doctor may cause a delay in processing of your claim and denial of your benefits.
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Remember: We cannot help you, unless you call the Union office to begin a file and let the Workers’ Comp Rep know that you were injured, and/or are having problems.
HEALTH INSURANCE TERMS
Health Maintenance Organizations
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Required to have a primary care physician that’s responsible for managing and coordinating health care
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Must choose your doctors within the HMO network
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Need a referral to see a specialist except in emergency situations but the specialist must be in network at well.
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No coverage for any services that are out of network
Preferred Provider Organizations
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A health plan that has contracts with a network of preferred providers that you can choose from.
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You are not required to have a primary care physician and you do not need a referral to see a specialist.
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You can choose any healthcare provider in a network and pay the co-payment and deductible but if you choose an out of network provider there will be higher costs.
Century Preferred Comp
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It is a PPO plan that has varying levels of deductibles and coinsurance for all covered services.
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Has a network of providers that allows you to receive health care for cheaper than using out-of-network providers.
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No primary care physician referral required to see a specialist and all CT hospitals are in the network.
Point of Service
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Is a combination of the HMO and PPO plans with varying benefit levels.
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Required to designate a primary care physician who can make referrals to network specialists when needed.
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You can go to out of network providers but with greater costs.
Health Savings Accounts
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Savings account, that you contribute money into, that is used for health insurance costs.
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Employer may contribute to your HSA but you get to decide what doctor you see and how the money is spent.
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You must carry a high-deductible health plan to qualify for an HSA.
High Deductible Health Plan
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This is a requirement for having a Health Savings Account plan.
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Your deductible is higher than other insurance plans but your premiums are lower.
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Once you meet your deductible your covered health care costs are paid by the insurance company