It was deja vu all over again. In September, more than 200 county workers crammed into a council meeting to complain about unilateral cuts in their health benefits imposed by Executive John Brown. The audience was so large the meeting had to be moved to Courtroom #1. But pleas went unanswered.

So on Oct. 2, more than 300 county workers were arrived to ask Brown to change his mind. They got a little help from county council, who adopted a resolution asking Brown to re-think some of those cuts, but Brown appears to be unfazed.

Just hours before the meeting, Brown introduced a no-tax budget for next year that keeps their wages flat. In addition, Easton Mayor Sal Panto has proposed a 1.95 percent commuter tax that will mean a reduction in wages for the 900 county employees working in Easton.

The Fat Cat

One visitor unable to fit into Courtroom #1 was the AFSCME 15-foot tall Fat Cat. He suddenly appeared next to the courthouse about an hour before the meeting. AFSCME is the labor union that represents most Northampton County workers. Wearing a John Brown sign around its neck, this Fastidious Feline was wringing the neck of a hapless worker. Union members rallied alongside as cars driving by honked their horns

After this mini-rally, the raucous crowd filed into Courtroom #1, cheering for union agent Justus James and Council member Lamont McClure. They booed just as loudly when Executive Brown made his way into the room.

10 percent co-insurance

AFSCME union agent Justus James was both the leadoff and cleanup hitter, getting two opportunities to speak, thanks to some employees who gave their time to him.

"We will not go silent into the night," he warned Brown. He complained bitterly about the 10 percent coinsurance along with a $13,200 cap on medical coverage for many families. He complimented former Executive John Stoffa, who refused to impose these changes last year because they would hurt the worker. "We need to have a conversation," James told Brown. "The employees are not a number. The employees matter."

Brown's 10 percent co-insurance plan requires a worker's family to bear the first $13,200 in medical costs out of their own pockets. After that, they must pay 10 percent. In Lehigh County, a family must bear the first $6,000 in medical costs, but $5,500 of that sum is reimbursed. There is no reimbursement in Northampton's plan.

Staffing at the jail

Tom Davis, president of the Corrections Officers' Union, pointed out that the prison is now 30 officers short. He said he's approached Brown about this matter three times, noting that it creates a dangerous situation for officers who are forced to work overtime. "Do you know what it's like to work a day shift after working a night shift?" he asked, saying some officers are forced to do this three times a week.

"Brown always says he's evaluating the situation," noted Davis. "Well, sir, you've been on the job long enough!"

Davis also complained that when Brown laid out his changes for the prison staff, he told them to "feel free to shop around" if they objected. He felt that was an invitation to quit.

Another prison employee, Wanda Heitzman, called the short staffing a recipe for disaster.

Incremental cuts

Kelly Higgins, a Gracedale LPN who put herself through school, thanked Brown for placing her one step closer to foreclosure. She agreed that some benefit reductions might be necessary, but in manageable increments. Saying she lives from paycheck to paycheck, she warned, "We're not going away and we're not going away quietly."

No wage hikes

Jerry Green, a union agent for the USW representing the nurses at Gracedale, charged Brown with fixing the budget on the backs of workers. He added that nurses have been working without a new contract for five years.

Brown supporters

Though many at the meeting were opposed to Brown's health plan reductions, he had some supporters.

Bethlehem Township resident Ben Hedrick, a regular attendee at Northampton County Council meetings, told the audience, "I have been where you are now." But he asked them to consider fixed income senior citizens like himself. Employees applauded him.

More strident was Lehigh Township resident Mike Myers, who got angrier as he spoke. "I learned how to budget," he admonished the crowd. "I speak for the taxpayer," he announced, accusing the unions of extortionist ways of collective bargaining. "Is mob rule going to be the way we do this?" he asked. He also told council, "If you guys don't have the backbone to stand up to the union shop, shut up and get off the podium." Employees groaned as Myers spoke.

Geissinger on cell

As people spoke against Brown's health plan changes, some began yelling at Council member Glenn Geissinger to "pay attention to the speakers." Council President Peg Ferraro reminded the crowd that they need to be respectful, and some responded that applies to Geissinger, too.

Earlier that week, Geissinger was a guest on an AM talk radio show, and said he was there to rally the troops and sought people to come to the meeting to speak for the taxpayers.

After the meeting, Geissinger acknowledged he had been on the cell phone. He explained that his wife is traveling, and he had been trying to reach her. He finally received a text from her during the meeting.

Executive Brown declined to respond to any of the speakers, choosing instead to make some brief remarks about his proposed no-tax-hike budget.

Council asks Brown

But Council responded.

Bob Werner introduced a nonbinding resolution that, after a minor amendment suggested by Ferraro, called on Brown to change his health plan to reduce its financial hardship. Werner acknowledged his resolution, "isn't worth the paper it's written on," but wants Brown to know council is siding with the employees.

All Democratic members of council, along with Republican Peg Ferraro, voted for the resolution. Republicans Mat Benol, Glenn Geissinger and Hayden Phillips were opposed. Seth Vaughn abstained, and it was adopted by a 5-3-1 vote.

Scott Parsons asked why Vaughn abstained, and he explained that the resolution is meaningless. But he voted for an equally meaningless commuter tax resolution in his very next vote.