By Howard Packowitz

BLOOMINGTON – Bloomington’s city manager is crediting a union representing about 100 city government employees with helping to curb so-called “pension spiking” that costs taxpayers millions of dollars.

The city council Monday night voted unanimously to accept a three-year deal with the union representing workers in Human Resources, Public Works, Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Arts Departments.

City Manager Tim Gleason said the contract with the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees Local 699 will effectively end accelerated sick-leave buyback payouts by May 1, 2020.

“AFSCME came to the table ready to negotiate, fought for items important for their membership, understood the financial impacts of how sick-leave buyback is paid out for employees hired before 2012, and were an integral part of the solution,” said Gleason.

AFSCME Staff Representative Renee Nestler said she appreciated Gleason sitting at the bargaining table instead of an outside attorney.

“Our task as a union was to minimize the harm to our members,” said Nestler.

“While the perfect solution for all is unknown, we believe we were successful in meeting both the city’s and union’s objectives. This is a prime example of how the city can work together with the union to resolve problems,” Nestler also said.

The contract calls for annual raises of up to three percent, and a larger signing bonus of a thousand dollars for workers not taking advantage of the inflated buyouts.

Nestler said AFSCME workers overwhelmingly ratified the contract.

Howard Packowitz can be reached at [email protected]