Different Takes: Mass. Cities And Towns, Public Employees Find Hard-Fought Compromise On Municipal Health Care Costs
Similar聽stories have聽played out this year in jurisdictions across the nation. Cities and towns, in the face of serious budget constraints,聽have repeatedly pushed聽for legal relief that would enable them to聽decrease the burden of聽public employees’ and retirees’ health care聽costs. On the other side of the issue,聽public employee unions have battled to聽protect the benefits聽they believe their members have earned through their collective bargaining rights. Earlier this year聽in聽Wisconsin, for instance, the battle reached a pitched level and grabbed national headlines. However,聽in Massachusetts, key players managed to come to a compromise that neither side loves, but which both agree will likely provide聽fiscal relief.
We asked Geoffrey Beckwith, executive director of the Massachusetts Municipal Association, and Paul Toner,聽president of Massachusetts Teachers Association, for聽their聽respective insights聽into these fiscal circumstances,聽why the compromise is acceptable聽and what lessons were learned.聽聽聽聽聽聽
Beckwith
Reasonable Reform Trumps In Massachusetts
According to Geoffrey C. Beckwith, the Bay State’s new law addressing municipal health care costs聽“will enable its cities and towns to save as much as $100 million a year by allowing localities to change the design of their employee and retiree health plans. …聽聽Many will say that Massachusetts demonstrated reasonableness and moderation, rejecting the militant anti-union policies of Wisconsin and Ohio. This is certainly accurate. But that’s how the reform passed. Why the reform passed is more important: taxpayers cannot afford unsustainable employee benefits.”
Toner
Massachusetts Unions Shape Compromise For State’s Municipal Health Insurance Law
Paul Toner writes:聽“The new municipal health insurance law …聽represents a compromise forged during very challenging fiscal times. The process was difficult and sometimes contentious, but it never devolved into an angry ideological standoff like those seen in so many other states and in Washington, D.C. … A key lesson for the unions is this: Even if our members didn’t cause this fiscal crisis, the crisis is upon us, and we have to be part of the solution. …聽We defended our principles while being able to offer solutions. In the end, neither the unions nor the municipalities got everything they wanted. That’s what genuine negotiations look like.”
