The tentative contract between SBPEA and San Bernardino County has pay raises of 4.25% the first year, 3.25% the second year and 2.75% the third year. Some people I have talked to believe those are generous raises compared to previous years. No, they aren’t. We have been getting 3% per year in the latest contracts. I have done the math and the difference for me is only 23 cents per hour more after 3 years of raises. It’s OK, but I wouldn’t call that generous. Later after we know what the inflation increases will be for the next 3 years and can compare that with our raises I wouldn’t be surprised to see a loss of purchasing power.

The tentative contract makes the following health and dental benefits cuts and retirement income cuts for me and others with less than 15 years of completed continuous regular service:

(1) Health and Dental benefits cuts

For those employees with less than 15 years service it eliminates the $190 per pay period Flexible Benefits Plan dollars. I’m single and whatever money I have been getting that I have not spent on Health and Dental I have been able to keep. No more. For me the difference is $23.03. That was extra money in my pocket. Also since the county will only be paying 90% of those costs I will be paying the difference of $16.70. My net pay will drop even more by that amount. So with the tentative contract including those health and dental cuts I will be seeing a drop in my pay check of $39.73 per pay period. Let’s round that off to $40.00 less every two weeks.

(2) Retirement cuts

For those employees with less than 15 years service it eliminates the $190 per pay period Flexible Benefits Plan dollars. If you look at your pay stub in the Hours and Earnings section, you will see the FBP$ is part of the total. If you compare that total with the amount given as Earnable Compensation lower down on the right, you will see the Hours and Earnings total is the same as the Earnable Compensation. So after the FBP$ is eliminated it appears the Earnable Compensation will drop by the same amount. Since the Earnable Compensation determines how much our retirement income will be and the FBP$ will no longer be counted, our retirement income will drop.