LTD, union request help of mediator.

Byline: Jeff Wright The Register-Guard

Wages, health insurance and retirement benefits are the biggest unresolved issues standing in the way of a new contract for Lane Transit District's unionized workers, according to a letter requesting the help of a state mediator.

LTD and the Amalgamated Transit Union sent the joint letter to the state Employment Relations Board on Monday. State mediator Bob Nightingale said Tuesday that a mediation backlog means he may not be able to meet with the parties until November.

The letter suggests the parties are not that far apart on major issues. For example, LTD is proposing wage increases totaling 3.25 percent a year over the length of a three-year contract. The union seeks annual increases of 3.5 percent.

Regarding health insurance, LTD has proposed increasing the "stop-loss" amount available to workers with major health costs by $200 a year; the union wants to increase the amount by $1,000 a year. The district currently provides up to $1,500 per employee per year.

As for retirement benefits, LTD currently uses a multiplier figure of $55 - an employee receives that amount, multiplied by the number of years of employment, in annual benefits upon retirement.

The transit district has proposed bumping the multiplier to $60, $62 and $64 in each of the next three years; the union has proposed respective multipliers of $60, $64 and $68.

LTD's 244 union workers - bus drivers, maintenance workers and customer service representatives - have been without a contract since July 1.

Union members went on strike during the parties' last contract negotiations in 2005. A strike won't happen this time, however, thanks to a new law passed by the state Legislature earlier this year. The law took away public bus drivers' right to strike but allows them to seek binding arbitration in the event of an impasse.

Under state law, parties aren't supposed to declare an impasse until 150 days after the start of bargaining; the 150-day deadline arrived late last week for LTD and the union.

Under mediation, the parties have 45 days to reach a settlement before turning to arbitration. Under the applicable state law, an arbitrator would have to select either LTD's or the union's final contract proposal, rather than incorporate elements of both.