Monday, April 26, 2010

A message from the Maine Labor Group on Health

Hello Friends of the Maine Labor Group on Health and Southern Maine Worker's Center,


As many of you know the Maine Labor Group on Health and the Southern Maine Worker's Center are partnering to hopefully provide occupational health and safety curriculum to low wage workers in the Portland area. We would love to have your input on this project. We are pursuing funding through the Maine Health Access Foundation's Fund for the Future  (pdf). One of the aspects of this process is to solicit public comment about our project on either the Fund for the Future's facebook page .The link to the facebook page is more direct and will take you directly to our proposal where we would love to hear a comment. The deadline for comments is this Friday April 30th. Please take a quick 5 minutes and tell us what you think of our proposal, what you would like to see incorporated in to our training, and tell us about any personal experiences you might have had with workplace health and safety issues. The more comments we have the stronger our proposal will be and the better chance we will have at receiving funding for our work.
Thank you.

Chapter Meeting Minutes: April 24, 2010

MSEA-SEIU Local 1989, Local 771

MINUTES

Chapter Meeting, April 24, 2010

Blue DOT Building, Hogan Road, Bangor, Maine

 

In attendance:

771 Members: Helen Hanson, Dixie Lewis, Doreen Strout, Theodore Rippy, Loris DiCesare

Wade Colpitts, 771 MSEA Board Liason; C.J. Betit, MSEA Field Rep;

Guests: Charlie Urquhart, Maine Labor Group on Health; Nicole Brown, Kennebec Valley Organization

 

Charlie Urquhart gave a presentation on the Maine Labor Group on Health. The Maine Labor Group on Health advocates for worker health and safety. Charlie talked about current federal legislation, Protecting American Workers Act, HR 2067, S 1580, that will increase protection for workers, increase penalties for businesses with violations, eliminate the loophole that allows employers to unclassify injuries, improve whistle blower protection, to name a few concerns. Congresswoman Chellie Pingree and Congressman Mike Michaud have signed onto this bill. There are 8 million public workers that are not covered under OSHA. Maine leads the way for worker protections. Charlie asked if 771 wants to support this legislation by signing onto a letter to Senators Snowe and Collins.

 

The second part of Charlie's presentation was on a grant that the Maine Labor Group on Health is applying for to provide some occupational and safety training for low wage workers in southern Maine. The grant is through the Maine Health Access Foundation. Knowing that direct care workers fit this bill, he asked the group for some health and safety problems that direct care workers face in their jobs. Some of the things mentioned were being physically threatened by a consumer, proper training for workers so they know how to respond to an emergency, handling verbal abuse from a consumer, support from supervisor, smoking by the consumer or family members when there is oxygen in the home, lack of access to health care because worker cannot afford it, lack of knowledge of laws pertaining to employment. The Maine Labor Group on Health is a finalist for this grant. If they are successful in getting it, direct care workers in the Portland area will be able to participate.

 

Nicole Brown gave a presentation on the Kennebec Valley Organization and how it is organized by member groups. MSEA-SEIU is one of KVO's largest members. Maine PASA's Leadership Council has become KVO's Health Care Team, tackling the issues facing direct care workers. Nicole gave an update on the LEAN process and what its goals are: increasing flexibility and portability for consumers and workers, increase consumers in self-directed care, consistency and equity in services, consolidating the current 7-program system down to a 3-program system. She talked about the extra $1 million that got invested in home care through this last budget cycle in the Legislature, she mentioned the passage of LD 1364 and how it will set the framework for setting up direct care worker employment policies.

 

Review of February meeting minutes – After the minutes were reviewed, Ted made the motion to accept the minutes; Loris seconded the motion, minutes were accepted by a unanimous vote.

 

Treasurer's report - Where Local 771's treasurer was not in attendance, Helen gave the report. Local 771 has $1,266.70 in its savings account and $484.12 in its checking account. Food for the meeting cost $33.47.

 

Discussion about 771 membership - As of March 16, 2010 771 has 216 full members and 106 fair share members. Wade had a more current membership count.

 

Discussion about MSEA statewide food drive - Bruce Prindle from one of the Augusta chapters has organized a union-wide food drive. Local 771 decided to make a monetary donation of $100.00 to the Good Shepherd Food Bank instead of collecting food donations. Ted made the motion to donate $100.00 to the Good Shepherd Food Bank, Dixie seconded the motion, and the vote was unanimous to make the $100.00 donation. Helen will write the check, mail it to the Good Shepherd Food Bank, and notify Bruce Prindle of 771's donation.

 

Discussion about Local 771 By-laws - Helen asked members to review the current by-laws and bring back concerns to the next meeting. Helen told members that she forwarded 771 by-laws to Bob Ruhlin, who sits with her on the Elections Process Committee, asking him to review them as well. She told members the section on elections needs review because MSEA-SEIU Local 1989 represents public and private sector workers. MSEA needs to follow the DOL rules on elections, providing maximum opportunity for all 771 members to vote in elections. CJ mentioned that by-laws changes can be discussed at one meeting, and then the vote is taken at the next. An advanced announcement needs to be made, notifying membership that a by-laws change vote will be taken at that meeting.

 

Discussion about expenditures for food at chapter meetings - Helen notified members that a pre-authorization, by membership, needs to be recorded in the Local's minutes, for someone to by food for Local meetings. Loris made the motion authorizing the purchase of food for Local meetings, for the year, but not to exceed $75 per meeting. Dixie seconded the motion. The vote to authorize the purchase of food for Local meetings, not to exceed $75 per meeting, was unanimous.

 

Wade asked if there is anything Local 771 needs from MSEA's Executive Board. Members couldn't think of anything at this time.

 

Local 771 agreed by consensus to sign onto the Maine Labor Group on Health's letter to Senator Snowe and Collins, urging them to support the Protecting American Workers Act. Helen will notify Charlie of 771's wishes.

 

Next Steps – next Local 771 meeting: Saturday, June 12, 2010, 10 am to Noon, MSEA-SEIU headquarters, Augusta

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Maine court upholds Anthem rate decision

By The Associated Press

AUGUSTA, Maine — Maine Superior Court has affirmed state regulators' decision to reduce Anthem's proposed rate increase of 18.1 percent to 10.0 percent for individual health plans.

In his decision Wednesday, Superior Court Chief Justice Thomas Humphrey said Maine law does not “expressly entitle insurers to a mandated profit margin.” Anthem contended that the 10.9 percent allowed by Maine's insurance superintendent provided no profit for the company.

The judge also said it was not improper for the superintendent to consider the state of the economy and profits from Anthem's other lines of insurance in making her decision on the proposed increase.

The decision addresses a 2009 rate request.

Anthem's proposed 22.9 percent increase this year for two individual coverage plans is still pending.


The Bangor Daily News 4/22/2010

REMINDER: Local 771 Chapter Meeting

Local 771 is having its regular meeting on Saturday, April 24, 2010 from 10 am to noon at the Blue DOT Building on the Hogan Road in Bangor. All 771 members are welcome.

AGENDA: Local 771 Chapter Meeting, April 24, 2010

MSEA-SEIU Local 1989, Local 771

Chapter Meeting

April 24, 2010, 10 am to Noon

Blue DOT Building, Hogan Road, Bangor, Maine

 

10:00    Welcome

    Introductions

    

10:05    Kennebec Valley Organization

    Nicole Brown

 

10:50    Maine Labor Group on Health

    Charlie Urquhart

 

11:10    Review Minutes from February Meeting

 

11:15    Treasurer's Report

            

11:20    Membership Report

    

11:25    MSEA Food Drive

        

11:30    Local 771 By-Laws

 

11:35    Expenditures for Food at Chapter Meetings

    

11:45    MSEA Member Strength Network

    

11:55    Next Steps

    Next Local 771 Meeting _________________________

    

12:00    Adjourn

Monday, April 12, 2010

Home and Community Based Care LEAN Update Tomorrow

The Home and Community Based Care LEAN Core Team is meeting again tomorrow. The team has been invited back together by DHHS to receive an update on what has been happening with the implementation plan.

Last fall, the team reached consensus on revamping Maine's Home and Community Based Care system from a 7-program system to a 3-program system. With this comes Medicaid rule changes and funding stream changes.

Tomorrow, DHHS is letting the core team know what has taken place since January.

One thing the workers of Maine PASA and Local 771 pushed for was a comprehensive, comparable budget; a budget for the current 7-program system and a budget for the proposed 3-program system. Workers are curious to see if there will actually be savings in the new system.

DHHS took this as the workers wanting to see if there would be any savings that could be turned into higher wages. DHHS urged the worker groups to look for savings elsewhere to increase wages.

This was not the intent of the worker groups at all. The intent was to see if there are any savings between the old and the new systems. Some on the core team voiced their opinions that there wouldn't be savings, some said there would be. There is no way to tell unless actual figures can be looked at.

It is pretty bad when a department of our state government cannot produce a budget for a system currently in place.

Health Care Reform to Improve Long-Term Care for Both Consumers and Direct Care Workers

Becka Livesay from the
Direct Care Alliance

Although health care reform continues to spark debate and controversy across the nation, when President Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, it marked the beginning of the most significant improvements to long-term care in a generation. Several components of the legislation, including Nursing Home Transparency and Improvement and the Elder Justice Act, will not only improve the care America's long-term care consumers receive but will also improve and better the working conditions and training for direct care workers.

NCCNHR, The National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care, works to improve the quality of care and life for long-term care consumers and their families as well as working conditions and training for direct care workers. When health care reform passed Congress, nearly a dozen policy resolutions adopted by the NCCNHR were addressed, read more....

posted by Becka Livesay on the Direct Care Alliance blog, April 5th, 2010

What Health Care Reform Means for Direct Care Workers and Their Families

If you're wondering what the health care reform means for direct care workers, take a look at this fact sheet (pdf) I received from the Direct Care Alliance.

It explains four different worker scenarios and how each one is affected by the health care legislation.

New Executive Director of MSEA-SEIU Local 1989 Announced

After a national search, the Board of Directors for the Maine State Employees Association, Local 1989 of the Service Employees International Union, has hired Aroostook County native Chris Quint as the union's new executive director.

Quint will direct a union representing over 15,000 publicly funded and privately funded workers in Maine. He succeeds Tim Belcher, who resigned last fall and is now advocating on behalf of workers as a senior advocate for the Boston law firm Lichten & Liss-Riordan.

Quint, 33, of Biddeford, currently is senior public affairs director for Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, a position he has held since June 2004. Prior to that, Quint was director of public policy for the Colorado Tobacco Education and Prevention Alliance in Denver from August 2002 to May 2004.

"We're thrilled that the person chosen to direct our union is a fifth-generation Mainer from Hodgdon in Aroostook County," said Bruce Hodsdon, president of the Maine State Employees Association. "Chris Quint has seen from his upbringing in Maine that public services strengthen Maine communities and improve the lives of all Maine people. Chris will direct our union in ensuring quality services for everyone in Maine, and in building and strengthening the coalitions to make it happen."

Hodsdon announced Quint's hiring at MSEA-SEIU headquarters, 65 State Street, Augusta on April 5th. He introduced Quint to the union's staff and to a chapter of union retiree members from greater Augusta at the union hall.

"It's just an incredible honor to direct the same union that my dad belonged to for 38 years as he plowed the roads in Aroostook County," Quint said. "Both my dad and my mom, who works for the special education department at Mill Pond School in Hodgdon, instilled in me the value of public service. Through hard work, they put my sister and me through college. While there are many challenges facing all workers in this difficult economy, we know that now more than ever, people count on public services in so many aspects of their daily lives, from strengthening their employment skills at the local CareerCenters to keeping their drinking water safe. I look forward to working with all MSEA-SEIU members as we advocate for the important services they provide."

Quint earned a bachelor of arts degree in history, political science and sociology from Colby-Sawyer College in 1998. He is married to Kimberly Smith Quint and they have two children. He will start working as the union's executive director in the coming weeks.

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

771 Chapter Meeting Location Change

The location of Local 771's next chapter meeting has been changed.

Due to an accessibilty problem at Food and Medicine in Brewer, the meeting location has been changed to the Blue DOT Building on the Hogan Road in Bangor.