SALT LAKE CITY (AP) – A union serving Utah teachers, firefighters, police and other civil servants will negotiate on behalf of workers under a bill that has been final legislatively approved on Thursday. You will not be able to.
Republican policy No collective bargaining Because all public sector occupations have passed the Senate 16-13 Vote after sponsors waived the proposed compromise that would remove the full ban. After several days of negotiations, some unions were still disapproved, leading lawmakers to advance the more restrictive original versions that had already passed through the house.
“If there’s no consensus, let’s run it in the face,” said Senator Kirk Karimore, the bill’s Senate sponsor.
Workers experts say the proposal to head to the governor’s desk as Republicans try to curb the political influence of teacher unions will establish one of the nation’s most restrictive labor laws.
The move in Utah comes as President Donald Trump prepares US Education Division To the greatest extent of his strength by reducing spending and putting pressure on his employees to quit.
Public educators are the most frequent users of collective bargaining states, viewing policy as a direct attack on organizational strength. Teachers’ unions were outspoken opponents of Republican policies in Utah and other states that lawmakers are trying to eliminate. Diversity, Equity and Inclusive Programexpand School choice Vouchers and restrictions Transgender bathroom use and Sports participation At school.
State employees can still join unions under the bill. However, the unions were unable to formally negotiate on their behalf for better wages and working conditions.
Republican Gov. Spencer Cox has not indicated whether he will sign or refuse the action. Spokesman Robert Carroll said Thursday that the governor was continuing his discussion and now that he has passed, he’ll take a closer look.
The Utah Education Association, the state’s largest public education employee union, has called on Cox to prove their support for teachers by issuing a prompt veto.
The bill was not passed with a veto margin. This means that if Cox refuses it, Republicans need to draw in more support to override his veto. All Senate Democrats and seven Republicans opposed the bill on Thursday.
Karimore and his House co-sponsor, Rep. Jordan Teusher of South Jordan, said collective bargaining agreements often limit workers from participating in their contract negotiations, and communications between union representatives and employers. He said he would just allow it.
Some of the conservative teachers who testified before Congress, who said that the left-leaning teachers union should not have all negotiating powers, were some teachers. Teuscher said the bill would remove intermediaries and allow employers to directly engage with all employees when dealing with workplace concerns.
The proposal was not anti-union or anti-teacher, Karimore argued.
“We passed the bill here and directly supported it when teachers’ pay was not done at the local level and not done by the union,” he said. “We took it to ourselves so that they felt respected.”
If Cox signs the bill, Utah, along with North and South Carolina, will become one of the most restrictive states for public sector unions.
“The bill transformed civil servants into indentured servants,” Sen. Kathleen Leebe, a teacher and Democrat from Salt Lake City, said just before the vote. “The people who protect you, the people who take care of you, and the people who run this city are asking you not to pass this bill.”
Firefighter Jack Tidlow, who appeared in Congress almost every day for two weeks, said for two weeks that the union has played a key role in keeping firefighters safe at work. Utah is not so safe now, he told reporters after the Senate approved the measure.
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