By Patrick J. Fugina

The state’s assistant district public defenders have voted 124-88 to approve the Labor Agreement between the State Board of Public Defense and Minnesota Teamsters Local 320. The ballots were counted Thursday, March 30, 2000 at the Teamsters offices at 3001 University Ave. S.E., Minneapolis.

Of the state’s 288 public defenders, 214 returned ballots. Of those casting ballots, 124, or 57.9 percent, voted to approve the contract; 88, or 41.1 percent, voted not to approve. Two ballots were voided, one because the envelope did not contain a marked ballot, the other because the public defender was a recent hire and not part of the bargaining unit.

The Board of Public Defense must approve the labor agreement before it can be implemented. However, Brian Aldes, Union Local 320 business agent, said board members indicated their support at a recent retreat. It appears to be a mere formality to have the Board signify official approval.

The only other steps to implementation require the union to prepare signature contracts that are signed by union and negotiating committee representatives, followed by submission to management for signatures by Board representatives, according to Aldes. He predicted these steps should be completed within two weeks.

Implementation of the contract will trigger a 2.5 percent cost of living adjustment for all public defenders retroactive to July 1, 1999.

The salary schedule under the agreement will take effect July 1, 2000. It provides for a salary range of $43,000 for a full-time public defender with no experience to $83,082 for a full-timer with 22 years or more of experience. The entry level salary is a significant increase over the current starting salary of about $32,000 for a full-time public defender with no experience.

The range for part-time public defenders in the agreement is from $32,250 to $62,312 for ¾-timers and from $21,500 to $41,541 for ½-timers.

The agreement provides for annual salary increases of 2 ½ percent, except increases for years of experience at steps 3, 8, 13 and 18 would be 5 ½ percent. Public defenders’ years of experience will be determined by years of continuous service of at least half-time status as a public defender, including work for the state, county, law firms funded through the Board of Public Defense, or for a state outside Minnesota.

The agreement doubles overhead compensation to eligible part-timers. Payments to ¾-timers will increase from $1,500 to $3,000 and for ½-timers from $1,000 to $2,000 annually. Management and the union must still agree on eligibility criteria. A conference committee of part-time public defenders and chief public defenders tentatively agreed that eligible part-timers must have a professional space to meet clients, a phone line with messaging capability, and access to a fax and copier. The contract requires the Board and Union to meet and finalize the criteria.

The agreement also provides for termination and discipline for just cause only, and a three-step grievance procedure with unresolved issues settled by binding arbitration.

Public defenders who are members of the union will pay monthly dues equal to two times their regular hourly pay.

The labor agreement covers a two-year period from July 1, 1999 to June 30, 2001. With the public defenders already nearly nine months into the contract period, negotiations toward the next contract are likely to start in about a year.