Attention All State Employees - Remember to Watch Out for Your Next MOU Contract!

You will be receiving your MOU contract at some point between between July 1, 2010 to December 31, 2010. Please make sure to carefully read through this memorandum and look for a reference to yourself as required to pay a fair share, a service fee, or any other wording that will take money from your paycheck. If you discover such wording, then your choice should be quite easy. Vote NO on this memorandum and then send it back to its originator. As a state employee, you have the right to vote on this memorandum, whether you want a mandatory service fee taken out of your paycheck or not. It’s up to you, and your future lies in your hands. So please be proactive.

House Bill 1346, repealing "The Fair Share Act" is in the 2010 legislature now. MCEA strongly supports this bill and is actively repealing service fees and will continue to fight for state employees to keep their hard-earned money in their own pockets.

2009 Convention Results - Newly Elected Officers/Board of Directors

MCEA's Newly Elected President

On October 13, 2009, Stephen Schaefer was elected to a two-year term as MCEA President. Mr. Schaefer has been a dedicated, active member of MCEA for 25 years. He most recently served as MCEA’s 2nd Vice President for two years and a Board Director for three years. He also served as President of Chapter 201 (Office of Public Defenders) for eight years and as former Chair of TEAM, as well as past Chair of the Resolutions Committee. He has been a state employee for 26 years and works for the Office of the Public Defender. Mr. Schaefer enjoys golfing and his grandchildren in his spare time.

Officers serving on the Board of Directors:

• Linda Day as 1st Vice President. Mrs. Day is a 19 year member who works for the Department of Social Services and has been a state employee for 25 years. She most recently served as Area I Governor and Board Director for many years, as well as President of Chapter 45 (DSS). She started Chapter 45 with only 10 members and it has now grown to 179 members. She has also been Head of many committees and is instrumental in forming town hall meetings for MCEA as well. Mrs. Day is proud to have testified in Annapolis against service fees. She enjoys shopping, cooking, going to church, and entertaining/hosting parties.
  
• Michael Miller as 2nd Vice President. Mr. Miller is a three year member and has worked in the Division of Corrections for 15 years now. He was a Board of Director for one year and has applied himself to advance quickly to 2nd Vice President. He is certified in the areas of Case Management Supervisor, Public Information Officer, Intelligence Officer, EEOC Representative, Internal Investigator, Litigation Coordinator, Mediator for the State of Maryland, First Respondent for MEMA in case of a Statewide Emergency, and Commander of the Hostage Negotiation Team in Jessup. He enjoys being with his family and is looking forward to working for the future of MCEA.
  
• David Stewart as Secretary. Mr. Stewart is a 23 year member and works as the Acting Bureau Chief for Child Protective Services in Prince George's County. He worked his way up from Investigator, Supervisor, Appeal Administrator to now Chief. He has been a state employee for over 23 years as well. Mr. Stewart has taken active roles as President, Vice President and Treasurer of Chapter 97 (Prince George's County Social Services), and he most recently served as Board of Director for four years. In his free time, he loves to take pictures, walk and hike. His wife and he also competed in the Baltimore Marathon in October 2009 with great timing.
  
• Phyllis Lickliter as Treasurer. Ms. Lickliter is a 34 year member and has worked for the state for 22 years. She worked for the Bureau of Support Enforcement and is now retired. She served as Treasurer for four years and Secretary for 12 years for MCEA. Ms. Lickliter is 1st Vice President of the Retirees Chapter 152, and past President of Chapter 109. She was also Chair of the Bylaws, Grievance Hearing, and Internal Audit Committees. In her spare time, she is active in her church and volunteers for the Senior Center. She is also Secretary of the Commission on Aging for Caroline County and enjoys fishing as well.

Non-Officers serving on the Board of Directors:

• Anna Cluster
• Christopher Farnell
• Marion Barnard Jones
• Antoinette Perry

(Terms expire in 2011)

• John Prince
• Jerri Spry
• Barbara Thompson
• Agnes Valenzia

(Terms expire in 2010)

For more news, go to www.mcea.org/whats_new.html

The Latest on Furloughs (2009)

MCEA is outraged at the Governor for continuing to reach into the pockets of hard-working, financially challenged State workers. We have always opposed any pay cuts, furloughs, benefit cuts and services fees and will continue to fight for state employees in these trying times. We will remain active in our fight to help state employees, so join MCEA and join the fight!

Governor O'Malley’s latest round of budget cuts cost 205 state employees their jobs and slashed more than $210 million in funding for road maintenance, health care, community colleges and police funding in Baltimore and the surrounding 23 counties. Despite MCEA’s numerous efforts to stop the Governor from balancing the budget on the backs of state workers again, the Governor’s proposal also included furloughs for most of the state’s 70,000 employees, a shutdown of routine government operations on five days near holidays and other agency cutbacks.
State government offices will also be shut down for five days, including the days before Thanksgiving and Christmas, New Year's Eve, and the Friday before Memorial Day weekend. Employees making more than $40,000 a year will not be paid for all of those days. Workers making less than $40,000 wouldn't be paid for three days and would have to take vacation or comp time for the other two days. Those pay cuts would be spread throughout the remaining 10 months of the fiscal year. Unlike last year's furlough plan, which contained as many as five unpaid days depending on salary level, emergency personnel will be required to take some unpaid days. And this time, employees will be allowed to take additional voluntary furlough days or seek a 35-hour work week for less pay.

State employee furlough and pay reduction plan by income:

Less than $40,000: 3 days

$40,000 to $50,000: 8 days

$50,000 to $100,000: 9 days

More than $100,000: 10 days

Heavy budget cuts of more than a half million dollars have also been shaved from Public Safety and Correctional Services as well. The Eastern Correctional Institution is a national model of Maryland’s largest prison that has been affected. The Board of Public Works of Maryland agreed to cut/transfer $280 million from the state budget to help make up for a $700 million financial hole. The DPSCS portion includes the elimination of correctional offer retention bonuses, a budget reduction of $588,000, a $25,000 re-estimation of contractual services costs based on actual expenditures, and a transfer of $500,000 from the Maryland Correctional Enterprises’ $1 million fund balance to the general fund.

MCEA Leaders Shocked Regarding Involuntary Strip Searches - They Had “No Right To Do This”

In early October, 2008, three employees of the Eastern Correctional Institution in Westover, Maryland were subjected to illegal and unwarranted strip searches, this in the wake of the strip searches of nine correctional employees in Western Maryland in August of this year. As described by ECI Warden Kathleen Green, “personal search policies and procedures were violated against our staff.” For this, Warden Green apologized, acknowledging that “we had no right to do this,” and assuring that she will “mandate additional search procedure training for staff, and especially for supervisors.”

MCEA President Marilyn Miller was shocked and disappointed by the development, issuing the following statement:

“MCEA is greatly disturbed by what seems to have been a fully unauthorized, over-zealous act by certain employees of Eastern Correctional Institution, done without the authority of the Department of Public Safety Administration, and without any adherence to proper procedures. We have learned how utterly traumatic it is for employees to be subjected to this type of humiliation, and are keenly aware of the reasons why strip searches should only be undertaken based on necessity, and only under circumstances that protect the rights and the dignity of employees. MCEA trusts that Secretary Maynard will take swift and appropriate action, both in condemnation of those responsible for these latest unauthorized strip searches, and in correction of the wrong done to the wrongly searched correctional employees.”

MCEA will continue to investigate this event, and is committed to taking such steps as are necessary to protect the rights of all State workers to a safe and dignified working environment. This can not be allowed to happen again!

MCEA - On The Scene And On Your Side!

On August 12, 2008, nine employees of the Maryland Correctional Training Center were illegally and improperly subjected to strip searches as a result of a drug screening procedure designed to reduce contraband being brought into the prison. MCEA Labor Relations Specialist Ron Smith was immediately on the scene, talking to the affected employees and to the administration in order to find out two things: why did this happen, and what is being done to prevent it from happening in the future?

As was noted in the Baltimore Sun:

Prison officials have said the searches were done after wand tests showed traces of drugs. No contraband was found. Ronald Smith, a labor relations specialist for the Maryland Classified Employees Association, said the group is discussing a possible civil rights lawsuit on behalf of the employees. “No one that reports to work wants to be strip searched,” Smith said. Smith also said corrections officials should focus more on contact visits by prisoners’ relatives, not employees.

Since MCEA has become involved in this matter, the Division of Corrections has committed to stopping use of the Ionscan screening method - the failed screening process that gave rise to the searches. In addition, the DOC has indicated its commitment to taking action against those responsible for the improper searches, to righting the wrongs done to the affected employees, and to correcting procedures to ensure that this does not happen again.

MCEA has and will continue to pursue not just the rights of our members, but of all correctional employees, to be treated with dignity and to be free from unwarranted searches.

Governor O’Malley Appoints MCEA Representative to Task Force

The inaugural meeting of Governor O’Malley’s appointed Task Force on Prison Violence met on June 18 at the Department of Public Safety & Correctional Services headquarters in Towson. Among those appointed to the Task Force were Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services officials, corrections officers, union representatives and elected officials. Introductions and ideas on how to spearhead prison violence were discussed. Director of Legislation Rhea Harris conducted the meeting. Task Force Co-Chairs and Keynote Speakers Senator Verna Jones and Delegate Christopher Shank addressed the meeting in a positive and sincere manner.

Ward Clem will now be our MCEA lead representative on the Task Force and our voice to improve prison violence. He currently replaced Larry Kump’s appointment on the Task Force due to his retirement. Ward is a dedicated Psychology Associate at the Maryland Correctional Institution. His background in correctional mental health and addictions treatment fields will make him an excellent asset to the Task Force team, and his diligence and compassionate voice will surely make a sound impact in improving our future. Thank you Ward for stepping up!

The Task Force will meet once a month on Tuesdays at noon, for a total of five consecutive months, and continue until the end of the 2008 year. The Task Force will function in three main groups; Environment and Health, Gangs, Contrabands and Drugs, and Best Practices. Senator Jones commented, “I am really excited and encouraged to make an impact to society. There is a wonderful diversity amongst us with varying backgrounds, and we have a chance to share our values and perspectives and bring new ideas to the table. We are future legislation!” After the conclusion of the meetings, the Task Force will prepare a report to Governor Martin O’Malley by December 31 and provide him with their strategies and findings in order to help provide effective solutions to make a difference in the state of Maryland.

Increased Pay/Health Plan for Harford County Employees

In June, MCEA and the Harford County Government reached a one year agreement for the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which includes 9% and 10% pay raises for Harford County employees. For the last several months, MCEA Labor Relations Specialist Michael Keeney, Harford County Human Resources Director Scott Gibson and the respective negotiating teams have conducted negotiations concerning wages, hours of work and other terms and conditions of employment.

This was the first time more than 700 public county employees attended the hearings to provide testimonials to support their rights. As a result, a unanimous 7-0 vote was confirmed by the Council and ratified. The new pay/health plan features a 3% cost of living adjustment increase, a 3% merit adjustment increase, a 3% market adjustment increase and a 4% market adjustment increase for all dispatchers working in Emergency Operations Centers. Harford County will also offer CareFirst products for health care and pay an average of 95% of an employee’s health care/vision insurance.