Legislature approves pay raises, bonuses
The House and Senate passed a state budget in early June that includes 2 percent pay raises for most state employees, five extra days of leave and a 1 percent bonus for retirees.
Correctional personnel will receive 4 percent as well as differential pay when working at a custody level higher than the one to which they are assigned. The line-of-duty death benefit also doubled to $100,000.
Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed the budget, objecting to the speedy process legislators used to pass it, and the House and Senate both voted to override his veto. The pay raises will take effect July 1, and retirees should receive the bonus in their October checks.
'Life changing money'
Perhaps the most newsworthy provision of the budget for state employees sets the minimum pay for workers covered by the State Human Resources Act at $31,200, or $15 an hour.
Raising the minimum salary to $31,200 is a huge win for SEANC members. Some workers will get up to a 28 percent increase because of this move. North Carolina is the first state to enact this standard in the nation.
“This is life-changing money for
some workers,” said SEANC Executive Director Robert Broome. “State employees shouldn’t have to choose between food and medicine each month. It is a necessary step to ensure that working for the state is not a pathway to poverty.”
SEANC a major player in discussions
Legislative leaders and the Cooper administration painted a grim picture for state employees earlier this year, telling SEANC to expect a modest bonus instead of a base pay increase and nothing for retirees.
However, at SEANC’s urging, Gov. Roy Cooper used his budget proposal to call for the largest investment in state employees and retirees in a decade. The governor’s proposal, coupled with grassroots action by SEANC members, led House and Senate leaders to invite SEANC to the table to discuss our members’ priorities and as a result, changed their tune.
In the final hours of negotiations, House and Senate budget writers invited SEANC leaders into the room and heard our concerns. The next day, Broome joined legislators at a press conference to announce a plan that raises pay for every state employee, puts more money in retirees’ pockets, addresses critical pay issues for everyone working in a correctional institution and establishes a $15/hour minimum wage for state employees.
$31,200
Your voices were heard!
Thank you to the thousands of SEANC members who wrote, called or met with your lawmakers! Your voice was heard. Without you, these negotiations would not have gone from a one-time bonus to a real wage increase for everyone.
SEANC members made their voices known through emails, phone calls, and in-person meetings at the General Assembly. Every legislator in the General Assembly received at least one email on the budget from a SEANC member, and more than 3,700 emails were sent.
We have an obligation to speak up for ourselves
“All politics is local,” declared the late U.S. House Speaker Tip O’Neill, who used the phrase as the title of his 1992 book about the rules that made him a successful politician.
O’Neill wrote that he learned this lesson in 1935 after a failed bid for a city council seat. It was his first campaign and his only defeat. He would go on to be one of the longest-serving Speakers in U.S. history.
The principle behind O’Neill’s maxim is that a politician’s success is directly tied to their ability to understand and influence the issues important to their constituents. Taking care of constituents’ concerns is the clearest path to winning an election.
REPORTER THE
Jonathan owens, Editor-In-Chief
Beth Dew, Managing Editor amanDa wise, Associate Editor sara Cowell CoBurn, Associate Editor
State Employees Association of North Carolina 1621 Midtown Place • Raleigh, NC 27609 Telephone 919-833-6436, 800-222-2758 www.seanc.org
SEANC accepts advertising material from companies and persons seeking to communicate with SEANC members. Acceptance of this advertising does not indicate SEANC approval or endorsement of any representation that the message, product or service is as represented by the advertiser. SEANC accepts no responsibility and shall not be liable for any use of or reliance on any such information, product or service. SEANC is a private entity and is under no obligation to carry advertisements of any nature, political or otherwise, that may be viewed as contrary to the interests of the association and its membership.
“All politics is local” has become a fundamental mantra among candidates and campaign consultants. Following this philosophy creates an obvious obligation on the part of the politician who seeks to serve the public.
But what about a corresponding obligation on the public who wish to be served? In a world where squeaky wheels get the grease, we must look for ways to be heard that are clear, concise and consistent.
When legislators want to keep their fingers on the pulse of the voters, we have to provide that pulse.
How do we do that? At SEANC, we help create connections between members and legislators in numerous ways.
Voter Voice
Earlier this year, SEANC purchased a new grassroots action program called Voter Voice that makes it easy to contact your state lawmakers when issues are pending before the General Assembly. SEANC members used this technology to send more than 3,700 emails to push for pay raises in the state budget. Every legislator in the state received a message from a SEANC member, and it made a difference.
Voter Voice takes the guesswork out of communication by automatically linking you to your legislators and providing customizable messages. You can visit www.seanc.org/engage at any time to find a list of active campaigns.
Lobby Days
Nothing beats a face-toface meeting. Dozens of retirees and active employees participated in a SEANC Lobby Day at the General Assembly in May. They traversed the halls in Raleigh to make their case to legislators and staff, providing the important personal stories behind our policy requests.
In-district meetings
An in-person meeting does not have to take place in the capital to be effective. Several SEANC districts host meetings with lawmakers in their hometowns when the General Assembly is not in session. Examples include inviting legislators to your district meetings, candidate forums or even hosting an event in your home. SEANC will continue to put its members at the forefront of our legislative and political agenda. We will continue to educate ourselves, our legislators, and each other on the issues that matter most. When we all work together to make our voices heard, great things can happen. If we don’t, we can guarantee that another group will get in the ear of legislators and work against us for their own interests. In the end, all politics really is local.
Folwell directs BCBSNC to cut costs for State Health Plan
After cutting more than $100 million in Wall Street fees paid by the State Retirement System in his first year in office, State Treasurer Dale Folwell is now turning his attention to cutting costs of the State Health Plan.
Folwell has directed Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina, which administers the plan, to cut provider rates by 15 percent on major contracts negotiated this year. The move could save the plan as much as $300 million annually, and $1 billion over the next three years.
SEANC has long-contended that negotiated contracts allow rates that are much higher than necessary for many services.
Folwell said he hopes to use the savings to lower premiums and address the plan’s unfunded liability. Premiums
for the plan will remain unchanged for the next three years.
“I believe we can make a generational difference by allowing those who teach our children, protect us from crime, and pave our roads to have more affordable health care for their families,” Folwell said in a statement. “At the same time, we can pay down our longterm health care liabilities so that we can keep the promises made to hardworking public employees.”
Administrator, which processes claims, provides a network of providers, and establishes medical provider rates for the plan. It also negotiates rates with health care providers to establish the cost of medical services from health care systems across the state. All approved claims are paid using taxpayer funds.
BCBSNC is the plan’s Third Party
SEANC's finances receive highest praise
SEANC’s independent auditor, Rives & Associates, gave an unmodified opinion in its review of SEANC’s finances for 2017, which is the highest praise given by auditors. The firm presented the audit to the SEANC Board of Governors at its May meeting.
This marked the third year in a row of clean audits. The firm recommended no accounting
changes and reported no disagreements with management, giving SEANC an “unmodified opinion,” the highest rating possible.
SEANC also announced the hire of Gwendolyn Kea as the association’s Director of Finance. Kea comes to SEANC after serving as Vice President of Finance at Shaw University.
Folwell also announced in May that the plan has negotiated lower rates with UnitedHealthcare for 2019 for Medicare-eligible retirees with Group Medicare Advantage Plans. Savings for the plan, its members and taxpayers will be approximately $55 million. Treasurer Folwell plans to use part of the savings to freeze and possibly lower family health care premiums for teachers, state employees and other public workers.
Nominations
The SEANC Audit Committee is seeking candidates for election to a 3-year term to be decided at the Annual Convention in September. Candidates shall have financial experience that includes accounting principles, serving as the treasurer for SEANC or other organizations, business operations and compliance officer responsibilities or similar related experience. Candidates must submit a resume of relevant experience to be screened by the Audit Committee with a report made to the Board of Governors. This will ensure the professional financial experience necessary to serve on the Audit Committee.
Please email resumes to Audit Committee Chairman Keith Renner at vrkeithr@yahoo.com no later than August 1, 2018. Resumes received after August 1, 2018, will not be considered. Audit Committee
Executive Director Robert Broome
State Treasurer Dale Folwell
Lobby Day on May 23
65
as a vendor in
at the Pirate Fest held on April 14. A booth and table provided visitors with SEANC applications, insurance products and much more. Five new members were gained through this all day event.
Pictured are District 65 members Kiana Price, Tabatha Phillips and Cynthia Hart.
The Reporter, USPS 009-852 (ISSN 1069 2142), is published six times a year in the months of November, February, April, May, July and September for $2.50 per year, per member, by the State Employees Association of North Carolina, Inc., 1621 Midtown Place, Raleigh, N.C. 27609. Periodicals postage paid at Raleigh and additional offices.
POSTMASTER,
Please send address changes to: THE REPORTER 1621 Midtown Place Raleigh, NC 27609
for their
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in Winterville. The team was made up of SEANC members, their families and friends. Together they raised approximately $3,000 through various fund
throughout the year that will go to the American Cancer Society.
District
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Greenville
District 2 Chairman Cliff Johnson (blue shirt at right) and SEANC Member Relations Representative Felicia Chiambiro (blue shirt at left) sign up new members at the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment Center in Black Mountain on May 30.
District 22 Chairwoman Deborah Harney signs up Steven Grimes, the son of Fairley Grimes. Steven follows in the footsteps of his father and grandfather.
SEANC Operations Director Mitch Leonard speaks to a group of people at the Burke County Retiree Forum hosted by Districts 5, 6 and 7 at the Higher Education Center on April 26. Twenty-two people attended the event.
District 65 participated
24th year
Pitt County Relay for Life as
SEANC Purple
Crusaders
was held on April 27-28 at Boyd Lee Park
raisers
Picture includes (left to right): Debbie Austin, Stasia Austin, DeAnne Smith, Wendy Ozment, Kieanna Baker, Dorothy Andrews, Imani Baker, Te’Amonie Bell, Adorian Bell, Kathryn Kittrell, Neichelle Bell, Joanne Tyson, Lynn Tuthill, Clarence Latham, Lina Johnson, Martha Latham, Woodrow Daniels, Seth Tuthill, Inga Jones, Ava Hunt, Haley Clayborne, Karen Simmons, Tammy Heller, Veronica Williams, Cynthia Hart, District 65 Chairwoman Alicia Simpson and Mary Johnson. Not pictured are Melinda Sawyer, Linda Sawyer, Laranda Boone, Tiasia Andrews, Linda Nelson, Cathy Collins, Linda Schadler, Kiana Price and Tabatha Phillips.
District 59 had their first 2018 Member Appreciation event at Cherry Hospital on April 25. Thirty-three new members joined.
SEANC Executive Director Robert Broome and SEANC Operations Director Mitch Leonard were on hand to answer questions at the District 65 Retiree Forum at East Carolina University on May 29. The discussion included information about the General Assembly budget, the State Health Plan, the state pension system, and other retiree issues.
District 43 Chairman Duane Smith (Past President), District 66 member Spillman Grice (Past President), State Retiree Chairman Benny Brigman and SEANC President Stanley Drewery meet with Rep. Jonathan Jordan (R-Ashe). Jordan stood up for retirees during the 2017 legislative session.
District 17 members joined the retirees on Lobby Day. Pictured are District 17 Chairman Kemrey Lamarr and members Cindy Hunley and Tracy Garrett visiting Senator Gladys A. Robinson (D-Guilford).
SEANC President Stanley Drewery met with Rep. Chris Malone (R-Wake), who filed a bill to give state employees a $2,400 pay increase, which set the tone for budget discussions.
Insurance Board of Trustees Chairwoman Martha Fowler, District 56 member Gracie Edwards and District 56 Chairman James Vaughan review the list of legislators they plan to meet.
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State
1621 Midtown Place Raleigh, NC 27609
Now offering three new plans through Boston Mutual
SEANC has launched three new insurance products through Boston Mutual.
• Whole Life – Permanent life insurance ensures you and your family are protected for the life of the policy. This coverage offers guaranteed cash value that can grow over the years. The plan will remain in force as long as premiums continue to be paid, and your premiums will not increase. Eligible members may purchase coverage for themselves, spouse, unmarried dependent children through age 25 and grandchildren to age 15.
• Accident – This coverage pays a benefit in addition to other insurance coverages if an accident occurs that results in medical expenses. Benefit amounts may vary based on the plan selected (Silver, Gold or Platinum.) You may also insure your spouse and children under the age of 26.
• Critical illness – Lessen the burden of out-of-pocket expenses, if diagnosed with one of the covered conditions. Members can purchase up to $35,000 without answering questions about medical conditions. Spouse and children up to age 26 may also be covered. There are no
additional charges or medical questions for children.
Open enrollment will be held once again in September. To schedule your appointment or for more information, visit www.seanc.org/bostonmutual or call (919) 833-6436 to speak with a SEANC Insurance Specialist.