2009 Annual Report.pdf - Town of Milton

that we have been able to hold group insurance growth below 5%. The Town has
a relatively small insurance group which can be subject to substantial volatility
from increased claims. It is not expected that the Town will maintain a group
insurance growth rate under 5% next fiscal year. Two years ago, cities and towns
became eligible to join the Group Insurance Commission (“GIC”). To date relatively
few cities and towns have joined GIC. Joining GIC requires the consent
of a majority of the Town’s collective bargaining units. The Town Administrator
and the former School Superintendent held a series of meetings in 2008
with union representatives in an effort to secure the unions’ consent to join GIC.
In exchange for such consent, the unions sought an increase in the percentage
of health insurance premiums paid by the Town from 85% to 90% The Board
of Selectmen has rejected the union’s demand as it is not in the best long-term
interest of the Town. The Town has continued discussions with the unions but
to date the unions have not wavered from the demand for a 90% Town contribution.
The date to join GIC for FY10 expired in December 2008. The Town
will not be eligible to join GIC until FY11.
The largest increase in requested expenditures relates to wage and salary increases
for employees in all departments. Total requested wage increases including
step and lane increases aggregate in excess of $2,200,000. At the time
budget requests were submitted two police unions, the firefighters union, the administrative
union and unions representing the DPW, Cemetery and Park Departments
were working without contracts for FY09. With the exception of the
Police unions all other contracts have been settled and ratified as of this writing.
It is expected that the Police union contracts will be settled before the start
of FY10. At our recommendation, the May, 2008 Annual Town Meeting appropriated
no funds to be set aside for potential FY09 wage adjustments. A
small amount was set aside in the FY09 budget for FY08 wage increases. Both
the contingent and the non-contingent budgets for FY10 provide no set asides
for wage adjustments not included in departmental budgets. As a result departments
will be required to absorb any wage increases for FY10 and retroactive
wage increases for FY09 in their FY10 budgets. The Personnel Board has recommended
a 1% wage increase for Chapter 13, non-union non-school employees.
We have provided no set asides for Chapter 13 wage increases in either
FY10 budget. The estimated amount of wage increases for FY09 and FY10 that
are not included in departmental budgets including the Personnel Board request
for Chapter 13 personnel is approximately $828,000. Since we were unable to
reach a level service in either the contingent or non-contingent budgets funding
set asides would have simply reduced departmental request further below
level service. The School Committee requested that the school teachers union
reopen their contract to discuss a wage adjustment for FY10 in an effort to preserve
some teaching positions. The Union listened to the School Committee’s
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