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Trump Orders End to Federal Benefits for Undocumented Migrants; AL Senate committee advances bill to teach middle schoolers conflict resolution; Public health experts warn about pollution from burned plastics in LA fires; Schools struggle to keep up with diabetes tech, leaving parents to fill gaps.

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State legislators chip away at early voting laws, the North Carolina Supreme Court election saga continues, and universal private school voucher programs expand nationwide, putting public school funding at risk.

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A Taos, NM sheriff won't comply with immigration enforcement that could erode public trust, NH worries that a dearth of charging stations will force tourists driving EVs to vacation elsewhere, and Southern states promote workarounds to improve education.

Labor organizers push back on 'union-busting' bill

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Monday, February 26, 2024   

Labor organizers are pushing back on a measure in the Iowa Legislature they say is designed to undermine unions.

It would create an additional step in order for a labor union to be certified by the state.

Senate Study Bill 3158, introduced by the Republican majority, would require public employers that hire union-backed workers to submit a list of employees who are in the bargaining unit to the state within 10 days of a union recertification election.

If they fail to do so, the state will immediately decertify the union, unless the union takes the employer to court.

American Federation of Labor (AFL) Iowa chapter President Charlie Wishman called the bill a clear attempt to disrupt unions.

"If they're not sending in the list, why are they punishing the union by saying that the union needs to take the employer to court?" said Wishman. "It's just totally upside down, on its face."

Supporters of the measure claim the state had not been getting union membership information in a timely manner from more than 40% of companies holding recertification elections, and that this measure would fix that.

Wishman said unions have addressed that issue and claim it's no longer a problem.

Wishman suggested the bill would further burden an already overloaded court system at taxpayer expense.

"This is creating confusion," said Wishman, "and it is going to create more court cases, and it is creating more bureaucracy that didn't need to be there."

Study Bill 3158 awaits action in the Iowa Senate.



Disclosure: Iowa Federation of Labor contributes to our fund for reporting on Environmental Justice, Livable Wages/Working Families, Social Justice, Urban Planning/Transportation. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


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