Union Gripe Against CalPERS Survives

By JILLIAN SINGH

SAN JOSE (CN) – A federal judge refused to dismiss an AFSCME union complaint accusing the California Public Employees Retirement System of denying Santa Clara employees a better pension plan despite a Superior Court ruling.

The dispute between the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 101 is over a 2013 pension reform law signed by Gov. Jerry Brown.

Union employees claimed the Santa Clara Valley Water District increased the retirement age by 2 years for new employees after passage of the Public Employees Pension Reform Act (PEPRA). A 2012 contract set the retirement age at 60.

The water district sought dismissal based on the 11th amendment.

U.S. District Judge Beth Freeman ruled on Sept. 11: “As the Court understands it, pension formulas and other retirement benefits were purely a matter of negotiation between plaintiff and the district prior to the enactment of PEPRA,” and the state has “not established that the terms of the CBA should be treated differently.”

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[Source]: Courthouse News Service