News
Constantine Won't Push for Legislation Curbing Health Care Costs for High-Paid Workers
Although he said he was committed to requiring county employees to pay more of their health-care costs at his sales-tax announcement earlier this week, King County Executive Dow Constantine has no plans to push the county council to resurrect a proposal he sponsored last year that would require highly paid, non-union-represented employees to pay a portion of their premiums.
Last May, then-King County Council member Dow Constantine proposed legislation that would have required high-paid county employees to pay a portion of their health-care costs. The measure subsequently became a cornerstone of his successful campaign for King County Executive. However, the legislation died when Constantine was elected as county executive, and Constantine spokesman Frank Abe says "is not going to identify a position" on the legislation now.
"He proposed the legislation when he was on the county council," Abe says. "Now, as county executive, he has a different position to play because the executive actually negotiates with employees."
Abe notes that Constantine does plan to discuss health-care costs as part of labor negotiations with the county's 13,000 represented employees, but that "we dn't discuss our labor policy in the press."
The legislation would have only applied to high-paid, nonrepresented county employees.
County employees' health care plan is so generous that even Democratic King County Council members refer to it as a "Cadillac plan." If it had passed, county employees who make more than the median King County wage would have had to pay a share of their health-care premiums, equal to two percent of the amount by which an employee's salary exceeded the county median. (Currently, employees pay 18 percent of their health-care costs but the county pays 100 percent of employees' premiums.) For example, if a nonrepresented employee made $10,000 more than the county median of $68,210 per household, they would have to pay $200 a year toward their health-insurance costs. The proposal would not apply to employees whose labor contracts stipulated otherwise.
Last May, then-King County Council member Dow Constantine proposed legislation that would have required high-paid county employees to pay a portion of their health-care costs. The measure subsequently became a cornerstone of his successful campaign for King County Executive. However, the legislation died when Constantine was elected as county executive, and Constantine spokesman Frank Abe says "is not going to identify a position" on the legislation now.
"He proposed the legislation when he was on the county council," Abe says. "Now, as county executive, he has a different position to play because the executive actually negotiates with employees."
Abe notes that Constantine does plan to discuss health-care costs as part of labor negotiations with the county's 13,000 represented employees, but that "we dn't discuss our labor policy in the press."
The legislation would have only applied to high-paid, nonrepresented county employees.
County employees' health care plan is so generous that even Democratic King County Council members refer to it as a "Cadillac plan." If it had passed, county employees who make more than the median King County wage would have had to pay a share of their health-care premiums, equal to two percent of the amount by which an employee's salary exceeded the county median. (Currently, employees pay 18 percent of their health-care costs but the county pays 100 percent of employees' premiums.) For example, if a nonrepresented employee made $10,000 more than the county median of $68,210 per household, they would have to pay $200 a year toward their health-insurance costs. The proposal would not apply to employees whose labor contracts stipulated otherwise.
