Bayside Police Teamsters Win Arbitration Ruling In Insurance Case

An arbitrator has ruled in favor of Bayside police officers and dispatchers represented by the Teamsters in a case involving a change in their health insurance that required them to pay more for less coverage.

The ruling, issued July 3, also found that the Village of Bayside violated the police officers and dispatchers collective bargaining agreement when it changed health insurance carriers in February 2007. The arbitrator said agreement was violated because the coverage under the new insurer, Anthem Blue Cross, was “not equal to or better than the coverage” under the old insurer, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, in the out-of-network coverage, deductibles and durable medical supplies.

The arbitrator, Daniel Nielsen, said in his ruling the Village must reimburse employees for medical care costs in those areas.

Randy Monroe Business Representative for Local 200 said “the ruling shows that local governments must abide by collective bargaining agreements.”

“The ruling states that the contract is ‘clear and unambiguous.’ It states that the right to change carriers is conditioned on providing equal or better coverage,” said Tom Millonzi Local 200 Secretary-Treasurer. “The Village changed insurance carriers and chose one with lesser and worse coverage. We took issue with that, and won.”

Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents more than 1.4 million hardworking men and women throughout the United States and Canada.