After months of bargaining, UAPD and the Coalition of County Unions (CCU) have reached a tentative agreement on fringe benefits with the County of Los Angeles. The agreement will now go before the Board of Supervisors, where we expect it to receive final approval.
The following is a summary of the major points of the agreement:
2.5% Increase in the County’s Contribution to Choices: A 2.5% increase in the negotiated Choices contribution will cover most of the 2022 premium increases for the medical and dental plans available to employees that participate in the Choices Plan.
Bonus Payments
- A $1,000 One-Time Bonus for Full-Time Employees Who Worked During the Pandemic: Members who were employed full-time on or by July 1, 2021 will receive a one-time $1,000 bonus. Part time employees will receive $500.
- $500 COVID Appreciation Bonus (Requires Employee to Submit Attestation): Members employed full-time on or by July 1, 2021 who attest that they were at elevated risk for COVID exposure at work will receive an additional one-time $500 bonus. For purposes of this bonus payment, “elevated risk” means your job duties require you to be within six feet or less of co-workers, patients, county clients, or the general public for periods of 15 minutes or greater. The $500 bonus also goes to part-time employees who worked on average more than 20 hours per week. Employees will have to complete an attestation form in order to receive this bonus. Management will send out the attestation forms shortly after the Board of Supervisors approves the Tentative Agreement.
- $150-$650 Provider Relief Funds (PRF) Bonus for Department of Health Services (DHS) Employees (Requires Employee to Submit Attestation) This bonus comes from restricted funds that could only be used on the Department of Health Services. DHS employees who worked between March 2, 2020 and June 30, 2021 are eligible for the bonus. A Tier 1 payment of $150 will go to full-time DHS employees who worked primarily in an administrative or telehealth capacity and did not perform job duties that placed them at an elevated risk of COVID 19 exposure. A Tier 2 payment of $650 will go to full-time DHS employees whose job duties required them to be within 6 feet or less of co-workers, patients, county clients, or the general public for periods of 15 minutes or greater. Part-time employees who worked an average of 20/hours per week during the relevant time can receive a payment of $75 (Tier 1) or $325 (Tier 2). DHS employees will have to complete an attestation form in order to receive this bonus. Management will send out the attestation forms shortly after the Board of Supervisors approves the Tentative Agreement.
A New Paid Holiday: Juneteenth will be a new paid holiday.
Higher Carry-Over Limit: Employees now have the ability to carry over $550 (increased from $500) in unused Health Care Spending Account funds from the prior Plan Year to the next Plan Year.
More To Do on Family and Medical Leave: The parties have agreed to establish a Joint Labor Management Committee to study and make recommendations to the Board of Supervisors regarding paid Family and Medical Leave.
No Takeaways: Critically, the CCU successfully fought back the County’s attempts to take away our ability to protect your benefits in the annual medical insurance renewal process for Kaiser and Cigna, and to radically change enrollment rules for the CAPE medical plans.
Term: This tentative agreement is for a nine-month term, effective retroactively from July 1, 2021, to March 31, 2022. The term is shorter than usual, reflective of the ongoing uncertainty regarding the economic impact of the pandemic.