The Oberlin College Office and Professional Employees Union feel a crisis coming on. The College’s budget cuts threaten to alter the union members’ health care plan and violate the contract that was signed last summer.
As of last June, the total costs of Oberlin’s health care had shot up to $7.2 million and recently, as budget concerns intensify, the Faculty Benefits Committee has been charged with the task of lowering health care costs.
According to the committee, as of next January the cost of the plan cannot exceed $8 million annually. Thus, the College plans to “limit the participant group eligible for benefits, reduce the benefits covered and charge participants more for the cost of the coverage.”
OCOPE President and reserve room specialist Julie Wier expressed concerns that the College would force change on their carefully negotiated health care plan and violate the contract the union had made with the College last summer. “[The new measures] appear to disregard the rights we have as a union, and will force us to accept a plan designed by others,” she said. Afraid that their concerns will not be taken into account, she feels the union will have to “fight to make sure that the wrong is corrected.”
The College’s department of human resources was unable to comment on the matter.
The rising cost of health care surfaced this fall in routine contract negotiations between OCOPE, other campus unions and the College. “Health care is very important to our members,” Wier said, “and we worked hard to maintain a high level of coverage at a cost our members can afford. We know the Faculty Benefits Committee are looking at revamping it and we know they will not give us or the other unions access to their decision making group. Our members have very different needs then faculty.”
“$52,000 is a salary that our highest paid longest term employee doesn’t even make. Our membership’s average salary is somewhere around $28,000, and our lowest is around $20,000. These salaries make health care and paying for it a very difficult thing for our union members. Not only are our salaries different, but we live in different places [and] we represent more women and single households,” Wier said.
“We are sympathetic to the college’s budget problems, but there are a lot of areas to reign in money from and make savings. The College doesn’t have to violate contracts and hurt the lowest of the low,” she said.
OCOPE is also concerned about long delays in filling staff positions and the College’s use of “extra” employees (workers without any benefits) beyond six months. According to Wier, there are currently 15 open positions in the College’s office and professional staff-wing. Some of these positions have been open almost a year. “All of our open jobs are held in excess of six months before being posted for refilling with a regular employee no matter how much the position is needed,” she said. The College froze all hiring this fall in efforts to recover budget loss. Some positions, however, have been filled on the basis of extreme necessity. Most of the exceptions were made in food service.
“The College has found creative ways to circumvent the contract in order to keep using these workers in places where regular employees are needed. This continued misuse of the contract makes it near impossible for us to consider making agreements that might be more helpful to the budget situation,” she said.
“It really is a matter of trust —how can we trust making agreements when we don’t even see the current one being followed. Vacancies are not being filled [and] in some instances the remaining regular workers are experiencing high levels of stress,” Wier said.
Grievances have been filed, and there is a meeting planned for next week.
“The College will time it not to give us anything concrete or even pass hints as long as the students are on campus, after they experienced the demonstrations regarding the MRC interns. They know that the students are sympathetic and understanding of the needs of the working class. Last summer during our negotiations we had a lot of contact with students and they were very supportive. They let the administration know that even though they weren’t here, they were concerned,” Wier said. “We want to make this public early and get the student body’s support in case something does happen.”

For more information, see www.oberlin.edu/oncampus/questions/Default.html