ARTICLE XXIII: Insured Benefits

LIFE INSURANCE

1. The Employer agrees to provide full-time regular employees on the payroll as of the signing date of this agreement or hired thereafter, on the next full month following a thirty (30) day waiting period, with basic life insurance coverage and accidental death and dismemberment coverage in the amount of Twelve Thousand Five Hundred dollars ($12,500) and such employee may purchase an additional Twelve Thousand Five Hundred dollars ($12,500) supplemental life insurance coverage under the contract with MetLife, or equivalent coverage as provided by the Employer. Effective January 1, 2003, The Employer agrees to pay for all full-time employees on the payroll who have ten (10) or more years of service with the Employer, the premiums required to provide an amount of group life insurance coverage equal to the employee’s annual straight-time base pay through MetLife or equivalent coverage as provided by the Employer.

2. Upon retirement of a regular full-time employee, after age fifty-five (55) with at least ten (10) years of continuous service, the Employer will provide such retiree with basic life insurance coverage in the amount of One Thousand Dollars ($1,000) or at its sole discretion, pay the One Thousand Dollars ($1,000) to each eligible retired employee and terminate the continuing obligation to provide such life insurance policy.

3. The selection of the insurance carrier to provide the life insurance coverage referred to above shall be the sole prerogative of the Employer.

MEDICAL INSURANCE

4. The Employer agrees to provide medical coverage for all active, full-time employees and their eligible dependents. Employees shall continue to participate in the plans effective January 1, 2008, until the first of the month following the signing of the new Agreement. New full-time employees shall become eligible for coverage under the medical plan provided herein the first day of the next full month following a thirty (30) day waiting period following their date of hire.

5. The plan design for 2008 is the same as the plan which has been in effect for other employees of Blethen Maine Newspapers, Inc., since 2006. This plan includes HMO Choice/POS, a straight HMO called HMO Maine and Blue Choice/PPO. The Guild shall be educated and consulted about any changes to the medical plan design that are contemplated and the Employer will carefully consider the Guild’s views when making decisions about health care plans. At all times thereafter, the plan design shall be the same for represented employees as that applying to non-represented employees at the relevant time(s). This provision does not modify Article V, Section 4, (part-time employees).

6. The Employer and the Guild agree to participate in a health care advisory committee which will include participants from both represented and non-represented employees, the purpose of which is to educate ourselves and our constituents with regard to the state and national health care trends, wellness programs. Employees shall be eligible to participate in any incentive-based wellness programs implemented within Central Maine Newspapers.

7. Health insurance premium sharing shall remain unchanged, with the Employer paying eighty percent (80%) of the cost of the medical premium and the participating employees paying twenty percent (20%) of the cost of medical premium. The parties agree that the differences in the amount of premium sharing paid by non-represented employees and represented employees shall not be more than the percentage point difference that existed in 2007.

8. Should the plan design change during the term of this Agreement, the Employer’s share of the premium for an individual employee shall not be less than the actual per-employee premium paid by the Employer in the year prior to the plan design change. In subsequent years, if there are increases, employees will pay the increase up to their twenty percent (20%) premium sharing level as set forth in Section 7 herein.

9. In the event that federally or state mandated health care plan(s) become effective or changes in the tax treatment of employers or employees as they relate to health care benefits occurs during the term of this Agreement, this Article may be reopened by either party upon thirty (30) days’ notice. Resolution of a reopening pursuant to this Section 9 shall not be subject to the grievance or arbitration provisions of this Agreement.

10. In consideration of the agreements noted above, the Employer agrees to the following:

a. Effective January 1, 2009, employees may make a pre-tax contribution of four thousand dollars ($4,000.00) into the health care flexible spending account of each eligible employee.

b. Effective January 1, 2009, in addition to submitting for non-covered medical expenses, employees may submit for reimbursement from their health care spending accounts for certain over-the-counter drugs and other items as permitted by law. Employees may also carry over from one calendar year to the next for a period of up to ninety (90) days monies in their account to be used for reimbursable expenses incurred in the old year. The balance in any such account will be lost after the ninety (90) day period has passed.

c. Effective January 1, 2009, the Employer will make a four hundred dollar ($400.00) deposit into the health care spending account of each eligible full-time and part-time employee who is participating in the Employer’s health insurance plan at the time of signing of this new Agreement. If an eligible, participating full-time or part-time employee does not have a health care spending account, one will be opened for the employee and the Employer’s deposit will be made into the account to be used by the employee in 2009.

d. If Central Maine Newspapers engages a third-party to administer flexible spending accounts and the third-party administrator offers “debit card” access, this shall be made available to members participating in the medical plans at no cost.

11. Eligible part-time employees who opt to participate in the medical insurance coverage will pay a pro-rata share of the Employer’s cost as set forth in this Article.

12. The following named full-time employees who were fifty-five (55) years of age and who had ten (10) years of continuous service as of the date of ratification of the prior Collective Bargaining Agreement who retire after their fifty-fifth (55th) birthday may remain in the Employer’s group plan including eligible dependents at the employee’s own cost. Such named full-time employees who are sixty (60) years of age and who have twenty-five (25) years of continuous service who retire after their sixtieth (60th) birthday but before their sixty-fifth (65th) birthday shall have that percentage of the premium cost of the medical plan coverage for such employee which is paid by the Employer, paid until their sixty-fifth (65th) birthday. The employee shall pay the balance of the cost of such medical plan coverage. The Employer’s obligation to pay such percentage of the premium cost of the eligible named employee’s medical plan coverage shall cease when the employee reaches his/her sixty-fifth (65th) birthday. At age sixty-five (65) with twenty-five (25) years of full-time continuous service, eligible employees named below will be offered a companion plan to Medicare. Such employee(s) shall have that percentage of the premium cost of the companion plan coverage which is paid for by the Employer paid so long as the employee remains covered by the plan. The balance of the cost of such companion plan coverage shall be paid for by the employee. As the Employer’s percentage of the premium costs adjusts based on premium sharing set forth for employees above, the retired employee’s percentage of premium costs will also adjust accordingly. This paragraph does not apply to any full-time employee who becomes fifty-five (55) years of age after January 2, 2003.

Lynn Ascrizzi
Darla Pickett

HEALTH CARE ACCOUNTS

13. The Employer will continue Section 125 pre-tax premium paid for employee-paid group health insurance premiums. This plan will enable employees to pay their share of the health insurance premium by payroll deduction before State, Federal, and Social Security taxes are calculated and withheld. This plan is contingent on continuing approval from the IRS.

The Employer will continue its Health Care Flexible Spending Account established in accordance with Section 125 and 129 of the Internal Revenue Code, for the reimbursement of certain non-covered expenses under the group medical insurance plan. Year-to-year continuation of the plan is contingent upon compliance with applicable Federal and State laws, rules and regulations, and continuing approval from the Internal Revenue Service.

DEPENDENT CARE REIMBURSEMENT PLAN

14. The Employer will continue to offer a "Dependent Care Reimbursement Plan" in accordance with Sections 125 and 129 of the Internal Revenue Code. Year-to-year continuation of the Plan will be contingent upon compliance with applicable Federal or State laws, rules and regulations.

DENTAL PLAN

15. Full-time employees shall be eligible to participate in the Employer’s dental insurance plan currently provided by Northeast Delta Dental. Full-time employees shall become eligible for dental coverage the first day of the next full month following a thirty (30) day waiting period following their date of hire. The Employer reserves the right to change insurance carriers or to self-insure the dental plan provided that represented employees shall at all relevant times participate in the same dental plan that is provided for non-represented employees of the Employer. The Employer shall pay the full cost or premium for employee coverage. The employee shall pay the full cost or premium for any spouse and/or children covered by the dental plan.

EMPLOYEE ASSISTANCE PLAN

16. The Employer will make available to eligible employees a voluntary Employee Assistance Plan (EAP) subject to the following understandings:

The EAP shall be administered solely by the Employer; while it is the Employer’s intention to continue this plan for the term of this Agreement, the Employer reserves the right to change providers and/or plan provision, or to terminate the plan should the employee participation fall too low to justify continuation, if legislation/regulation impact the pricing or administration of the plan beyond the current state or an alternative is more favorable. The Employer and EAP provider shall periodically conduct voluntary seminars for employees interested in participating in this plan so they can make an informed choice to participate or not. The Employer commits to advise the Guild of any changes in the design or administration of the plan in advance of such changes.