U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kathy
Surratt-States signed off on the deal Tuesday after UMWA members
overwhelmingly approved it last week. It replaces a court ordered benefit
package that took effect on July 1.
This new agreement does the
following:
*Restores
all but $1.00 per hour in wage cuts that were as high as $7.53 per hour for
some job classifications
*Adds a $0.50 per hour annual wage
increase beginning New Year’s Day 2015
*Keeps Patriot in the UMWA 1974
Pension Fund, meaning there will be no effect on pension benefits for current
retirees, and current active members will continue to earn pension credit
*Eliminates monthly premiums for
health care benefits
*Reduces the annual out-of-pocket
maximum for health care benefits by 60 percent, from $4,000 to $1,600
*Restores life insurance benefits,
vision care benefits, dental insurance and Accidental Death and Dismemberment
insurance
*Creates a Voluntary Employee
Benefit Association (VEBA) as the mechanism for paying retiree health care
benefits going forward.
In addition, Patriot gave the UMWA
a more than 35 percent stake in the company as part of the settlement.
Patriot officials said the agreement will save the company $130
million each year for the next several years.
