Upcoming Events and News:


***EMPLOYEES….BE SURE TO CHECK YOUR PERSONNEL FILES!!***


Make sure that any disciplines are removed after 3 years!! It is your responsibility to do so!! To get this done please contact your Personnel Office.


AFSCME is have a sreening of the candidates to see who most supports our issues and to see who we will endorse for our local races. It will be for our district and N. Branch area. We will ask questions and decide after the screening who we want.
So be there August 20th 5 P.M. At the Creamery Café in Isanti.


BUST LORI SWANSON FOR UNION BUSTING!

In the face of fear, attorneys in the Attorney General’s Office want to join AFSCME. Last week they courageously wrote a letter asking their boss for recognition of their union. Today Attorney General Lori Swanson held captive audience meetings to coerce her employees into opposing the union. She summoned small groups of the attorneys to a conference room. With two supervisors and two judges watching, the workers were asked to mark an anti-union ballot saying that the letter requesting union rights didn’t speak for them. Let’s end the fear and intimidation, so the office can get back to protecting consumers.

Call Attorney General Lori Swanson immediately at 651-296-6196. Tell her to stop union busting and recognize the union chosen by her attorneys.

Also, call the legislators who appropriate funds for the Attorney General’s Office: Senator Don Betzold (651-296-2556) and Representative Phyllis Kahn (651-296-4257). Tell them not to fund the Attorney General’s union-busting activity.

Local 390!!


Subject: MN Advantage Prescription Co-pay Question



One of the most frequent questions we have gotten since the beginning of 2008 concerns prescription drugs that cost less than the co-pay at the appropriate tier. In previous years, the member would pay the actual cost of the drug or the co-pay whichever was less.

Beginning in 2008 at certain pharmacies (notably Walgreens and CVS) members are being charged the full Tier co-pay even if the actual cost of the drug is less than that co-pay amount.

Tier 1 co-pay $10   Tier 2 co-pay $16   Tier 3 co-pay $36


We have verified with the pharmacy benefit manager (Navitus) that Walgreens and CVS have insisted that this provision be part of their contracts with Navitus. Since Walgreens and CVS are big enough players in the pharmacy world they had the leverage to do so. It is obviously pure profit for Walgreens and CVS to do this.

Members in this situation may want to consider switching pharmacies and letting Walgreens and CVS know why they are making the switch. They can locate another pharmacy that doesn’t charge the full co-pay by calling the toll-free Navitus Customer Care line at 866-333-2757.

A list of pharmacies is also available by going to the Navitus website at http://www.navitus.com and clicking on “Find a Pharmacy” under “Members”. This will not have the specific information about the co-pays but members can call the pharmacy directly to ask the question.


AFSCME Scholarships Offered:

The Education Department administers several scholarship programs for AFSCME members and their children. Here is a link to a full list of scholarship opportunities available through AFSCME.
http://www.afscme.org/members/852.cfm


Subject: Union workers credit services


Recently we have had some members receive a solicitation from a company called "Union Workers Credit Services" out of Texas. Their mailing is deliberately very misleading and makes it appear that you can get a credit card from them, even if you have been previously turned down, for a $37 annual fee. They use terms like "advantage" also to suggest it has something to do with the union advantage programs.

The bottom line is they have nothing to do with the Unions, and it is not a credit card. Rather, for $37, you get to shop for products from their catalog, which you are unable to even look at until you have sent in your check. Scott found a ton of complaints about them just viewing a couple of web sites. One of the Unions has a suit filed against them currently.

I talked with Susan Welch, who is in charge of the AFSCME Advantage program, and they are aware of the company. She indicated they seem to be doing mailings by state, as it comes up in one state and then another. Its likely that they use lists they obtain through public data, because AFGE has also seen large numbers of mailings. In Minnesota for example, they can do blanket mailings to public employees and hit a high number of "union workers".

No one from the Union has supplied any lists nor will they.

Thanks



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