The county Road Commission will pick up the cost for union workers' increase in retirement plan benefits as part of a one-year labor agreement.

At its meeting Nov. 20, the commission unanimously approved a one-year agreement with the Governmental Employees’ Labor Council (GELC), the union that represents the commission’s hourly workforce. The agreement runs from Jan. 1 through Dec. 31, 2008. Union workers ratified the agreement  prior to the commission meeting.

Under terms of the agreement, union workers will receive a 25-cent hourly wage increase. Clerk Joe Nedow said there are three wage categories for the union workers: grade 1, supervisory positions; grade 2, regular workers; and assistant mechanics.

The four Grade 1 workers will see their pay increase to $16.56 per hour; Grade 2 workers, which make up most of the commission’s workforce, will see pay go to $16.06 per hour; and the five assistant mechanics will have their pay rates increase to $16.16 per hour. All three pay levels increased by 1.5 percent.

The only other major change in the agreement is that the Road Commission will cover the cost for changing the Municipal Employees Retirement System (MERS) from a B-1 to B-2 plan for workers. Under the current three-year labor agreement, each worker would have had to cover about half on the cost for changing from a B-1 to a B-2. Under the new agreement, the commission will cover the entire cost for the change. The change to B-2 will take effect on Jan. 1, 2008.

“Essentially the change in plan would cost 26 cents an hour to each employee. The commission is going to pay that cost,” Nedow said.

There were no changes in health insurance or any other benefits  as part of the new agreement.

Ken Nash, the local workers’ representative for the GELC, said he was satisfied with the agreement. He sees the increasing cost for health care as an issue in the near future.

“The workers may be looking for something similar as to what they received from the commission on the retirement plan costs increase,” he said.

Commission chairman Lee A. Bowen, who represented the commission board during negotiations, said he appreciated the union recognizing that the Road Commission is looking at an overall decrease in revenues for 2008 and ratifying the one-year agreement.

“Hopefully the state’s economy will reverse itself and improve for 2009,” Bowen said