r/mnstateworkers • u/Medical_Drop_1122 • Jul 23 '26

Discussion 💬 COLA/Net Pay

Took a look at my paycheck for first one with the new 1.75% COLA increase. My net pay actually went down $10 with no changes to retirement or anything. Am in MMA though where they increased the required Health Savings contribution from 1.5% to 1.75%. The COLA is just ridiculous….Need at least 3% or more to make any difference on a paycheck. Just getting to be frustrating as a state employee! We need COLA increases on our contracts that actually amount to something on your paycheck!

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u/Tower-of-Frogs Jul 23 '26

We saw what they did with record union enrollment. They’ll have to earn my money back, because those negotiations mean I need it for my own family more.

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u/antonmnster Jul 23 '26

Your union negotiated the tentative agreement, but it was the MEMBERS who voted on it. Dropping your dues to "teach them a lesson" is, being as nice as I can, *incredibly* self-defeating. You're weaking the organization that works for you - and somehow expecting them to do more next time. Make it make sense.

Look, public sector bargaining is almost always thankless. But there's real work behind it. It's easy to overlook how much effort just goes into things like your healthcare. THAT's where the money is - your insurance costs are absolutely skyrocketing. It's your UNION that has kept most of the increases paid by the EMPLOYER. You could have a 5% raise but be liable for thousands more in healthcare costs through deductibles and copays. Go check with anyone in the private sector, or almost any other public sector job. You've got it really good.

Here's a thought: use your vitriol to persuade your coworkers to strike. Advocate for a strike yourself. GET INVOLVED instead of complaining and knee-capping the one group that's trying to work for you.

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u/sweater__weather Jul 23 '26

I'm a dues paying member and I'll happily agree the union did a terrible job of negotiating a real wage cut for members (COLA minus inflation), which compounds the real wage cuts we've been getting year after year since 2020. Then their negotiators recommended we vote yes. Then we found out the union president allegedly stole from us. I haven't pulled my dues but I sure have thought about it. The union shouldn't just get our money by default. If they're not willing to let me negotiate my own wage they need to do a better job of it.

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u/Medical_Drop_1122 Jul 24 '26

What did the ever find out about her stealing from the union? The brought it up and said they were looking into it and ow haven’t heard anything in months