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What's New at IAFF 739
Arbitrator Irvings Award in Promotion Case

Posted On: Jul 01, 2009 (20:14:37)

Click on link below to see the full text of this Arbitration


Download: Award_Promotion_Case.pdf
NFPA 2008 Report on Firefighter Fatalities

Posted On: Jul 01, 2009 (13:40:32)

 

NFPA 2008 Firefighter Fatalities Report Released

Tne National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) recently released its report on firefighter fatalities in the United States for 2008. The full report is available from the NFPA's Web site, www.nfpa.org.

For the second year in a row, 103 firefighters died while on duty. The largest share of firefighter deaths occurred while responding to or returning from emergency calls, with 39 fatalities: nine who perished in a helicopter crash, 12 who died of sudden cardiac events or stroke, and one who died when he was pinned between a tanker and a bay door.

Last year was the second year in a row during which 103 firefighters died on duty. In fact, 2008 was the fourth year in the last 10 during which 103 firefighters died. The average number of deaths annually over the past 10 years is 101.

Read more about the findings here: http://www.nfpa.org/journalDetail.asp?categoryID=1858&itemID=43883&src=NFPAJournal&cookie%5Ftest=1

Download the complete report here: http://www.nfpa.org/assets/files/PDF/osfff.pdf

FAQ's on Pension Reform from PERAC

Posted On: Jun 29, 2009 (17:03:53)

FAQS REGARDING CHAPTER 21 OF THE ACTS OF 2009

Are payments under the “Quinn Bill” regular compensation under Chapter 21?
“The Quinn Bill” established by G.L. c. 42, § 108L clearly provides that Quinn Bill payments become a permanent part of an individual’s base pay. Therefore, they are included in the new definition of regular compensation. Funding of the Quinn Bill is a separate issue.


Are other so called educational incentives regular compensation under Chapter 21?
If educational incentives for individuals are a permanent part of the base salary, such payments are included in the new definition of regular compensation. If not part of the base salary, no, unless provided for in a collective bargaining agreement or employment contract in effect on May 1, 2009, in which case it will remain regular compensation until the contract expires but no later than July 1, 2012.


Are longevity payments, EMT payments, HazMat payments, Defibrillator payments, Homeland Security payments, Stand-By payments, and other similar payments regular compensation under Chapter 21?
If longevity EMT, Hazardous Material, Defibrillator, Homeland Security, Stand-by payments, and other similar payments are permanent part of base pay, such payments are included in the new definition of regular compensation. If not part of the base salary, no, unless provided for in a collective bargaining agreement or employment contract in effect on May 1, 2009, in which case it will remain regular compensation until the contract expires but no later than July 1, 2012.


Do amounts paid for working holidays for certain public safety personnel continue to be regular compensation?
Yes.


A collective bargaining agreement or employment contract was in effect prior to May 1, 2009. There is no new contract as of July 1, 2009 and the parties are operating under the old agreement until a new one is executed. If a new agreement is executed after July 1, 2009 how will this be assessed under Chapter 21?
If the old contract was in effect prior to May 1, 2009, the successor contract would be effective on the date the old contract expired and payments that were regular compensation will retain that status until the end of the successor contract, but not later than June 30, 2012. Retirement contributions should continue to be withheld while the new contract is being negotiated.

Does the definition of regular compensation impact payments made prior to June 30, 2009?
The new definition of regular compensation established by Chapter 21 does not impact payments made prior to July 1, 2009. Regular compensation status for payments made prior to July 1, 2009 will be determined according to the "old" definition. As a result there will be instances in which a member’s three year average will include regular compensation which is determined under both definitions. For example, regular compensation for June 30, 2007 to June 30, 2008 and for July 1, 2008 to June 30, 2009 will be determined under the "old" definition and regular compensation for July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2010 will be determined under the definition established by Chapter 21.
PERAC WILL CONTINUE TO POST ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS IN THE COURSE OF THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS.

State Pension Fund Losses Outpace Local Systems'

Posted On: Jun 26, 2009 (21:04:31)

 

By Michael Norton/State House News Service

Boston, Mass. - The state’s pension fund incurred losses worse than 48 of the 55 local funds last year, as some of the smallest public pension funds in Massachusetts, including five without investment consultants, were among the best-performing.

While long-term returns at the Pension Reserves Investment Trust place it among the top-performing in the state, the big Boston-based fund, which relies heavily on investment consultants and fund managers, posted a loss of 29.5 percent last year, compared to a negative 26.3 percent median return for 55 systems that invested on their own.

The PRIT Fund, overseen by professional staff and a board chaired by Treasurer Tim Cahill, invests all pension assets of 49 local retirement systems, in part due to a 2007 law aimed at bringing about property tax relief by placing underperforming local funds within the state fund. That law forced Lynn, Methuen and Southbridge into the PRIT Fund last year, while Arlington, Gloucester, Milford, Pittsfield and Waltham joined PRIT voluntarily.

But a June report of the Public Employee Retirement Administration Commission concludes the latest data means no retirement boards will be ordered to transfer assets to PRIT this year, with many local funds outperforming PRIT last year and a handful posting better long-term gains than PRIT. Placement in the state fund is based on the funding levels of local systems and the average rates of return, as compared to PRIT, over the last 10 years.

The 2008 return data, compiled in the PERAC report, shows smaller systems, those with assets ranging from $7.5 million to $130 million, performed best during 2008, when the financial markets were battered.

The best-performing systems last year had “well-above-average cash positions,” above-average investments in bonds and made strategic moves to reduce exposure to riskier investments, according to the PERAC report.

“We’ve beaten them handily the last couple of years,” Malden Retirement Board Director Kevin Morrison said, referring to PRIT. “Not going into the PRIT Fund really saved us, not that we had an inkling to do that.”

Malden’s 4.9 percent 10-year return on its $150 million fund is slightly better than PRIT’s 4.65 percent and its 9.58 return rate since inception also edges PRIT’s 9.41 percent, according to PERAC’s report.

According to the report, “For several years, the PRIT Fund’s size had enabled it to invest meaningfully and efficiently in a wider range of asset classes than many of the local systems, and its clout enabled it to gain access to the top tier of managers in these nontraditional asset classes, particularly in alternative investments.” Calling 2008 “a trend-changing year,” the report noted “smaller and mid-sized funds generally held up better than their larger counterparts” and said PRIT investments in international equity, emerging markets and hedge funds hurt in 2008.

“In the bull market that helped them,” PERAC Executive Director Joseph Connarton said, referring to PRIM’s investment strategy. “In the bear market, not so much.”

The PRIT Fund shed about $15 billion in assets during 2008, its balance falling to about $38 billion by year's end.

"PRIM is focused on a long term investment strategy and has been among the top performing pension funds nationally, over the past decade," Michael Travaglini, executive director of the Pension Reserves Investment Management Board, which oversees PRIT, said in a statement. "Because of the historic and unprecedented economic climate in 2008, some public pension funds with allocations in cash and bonds outperformed more diversified funds like PRIT. With 2008, behind us, we are confident that PRIM's allocation strategy is the most appropriate going forward."

The best-performing fund in 2008 was the $60 million Northampton Retirement Board fund, which covers the benefits of 683 active public employees and 338 retirees. Its 19.3 percent loss in 2008 was the smallest in the state.

“We’ve done consistently well and that’s without doing some of the more risky investment types,” said Christopher Pile, city finance director and chair of the board. “We didn’t get into hedge fund or any of that kind of stuff.”

Pile said the board has about $2 million invested with PRIT, but wants to remain independent from the state fund. “We don’t feel any pressure to put any more in there obviously since the state pension fund did far worse than we did,” he said. “I think we’ll just stick with what we’re doing.”

Investments in cash and bonds helped insulate Northampton from losses that other funds took in riskier categories, such as emerging markets and international equities, but the local fund is moving back towards stocks again. Pile credited the advice of the DeBurlo Group, a fund consultant that also advised Malden retirement officials.

Forty-one local retirement systems invested all their assets with PRIT at the start of 2008 and eight more joined the PRIT fund during the year, some of which were forced into the state fund under the 2007 law aimed at reducing local expenses and lowering property tax burdens by forcing “underperforming” funds into PRIT.

After Northampton, the best-performing Massachusetts public funds during 2008 were Greater Lawrence (-20.13), Malden (-20.47), Marlborough (-20.53), Norwood (-20.57), North Adams (-21.2), Braintree (-21.35), Adams (-21.71), West Springfield (-21.9), Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (-22.29), and Medford (-22.47).

A conservative approach, with an above-average allocation to bonds, helped protect Marlborough from deeper losses last year, said Margaret Shea, Marlborough Retirement Board director. “We’re a little more conservative. At least for this year it helped us,” she said, adding, “It’s hard to brag about when we still lost 20 percent.”

The two-year-old pension law means there’s always a possibility that the Marlborough system will be “swallowed up” by the state board, but local officials are comfortable with their approach to investing and have so far resisted the opportunity to allow the state fund to invest local fund assets, Shea said.

“Our board has always had a more conservative outlook,” Shea said. “It’s what they’re comfortable with. For that reason they haven’t initiated the process to transfer the money to PRIT.”

Since 1985, the PRIT Fund has returned an average of 9.41 percent per year, outpacing the vast majority of local funds, which registered average annual returns of between 7 and 9 percent.

Local funds with higher return rates since inception include Wellesley (9.93), Weymouth (9.64), Needham (9.6), Malden (9.58), and Wakefield (9.53), according to the PERAC report.

State House Briefs From June 25, 2009

Posted On: Jun 26, 2009 (21:03:28)

MENINO, FIREFIGHTERS DUEL OVER DRUG TESTING
Moments after Boston Mayor Thomas Menino testified in favor of a bill to require random drug testing of public safety officials across Massachusetts, the head of the state’s largest firefighter union blasted the measure as “unconstitutional” and “a fraud” aimed at circumventing collective bargaining. Saying his union supports drug testing, Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts President Robert McCarthy took aim at the media, telling the Committee on Public Safety at a State House hearing that press reports made it seem like “we are all on drugs and alcohol.” “This is about political spin. This is about hurting my firefighters,” McCarthy said. Menino compared random drug testing to an effort by the Senate to ban texting while driving, calling the latter a “common sense measure” that could be implemented outside of collective bargaining. Menino noted that bus drivers and garbage truck drivers get drug tested every year. “Why not a public safety official?” he said. McCarthy, who testified alongside Boston firefighter union chief Ed Kelly, said drug testing should be collectively bargained into the contracts of firefighters, not imposed by the state. McCarthy’s union represents 12,000 firefighters in 200 cities and towns. The 68-word bill would require “all public safety employees of the commonwealth or any municipality, and any emergency medical technicians, including those employed by a private organization or unit” to “submit to a random drug and alcohol testing program.” The Executive Office of Public Safety would devise regulations to govern the testing.



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