Over the weekend, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed House Bill 267 into law, banning labor unions from collective bargaining. This marks a significant victory for government union reform proponents.
Hats off to the Utah legislators, who championed this bill, Gov. Cox for signing the bill into law and our friends at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy for advocating for the legislation
This bill will allow direct communication between employers and employees and lead to more flexibility in setting wages, benefits and work conditions without being bound by union contracts.
In addition, the Freedom Foundation is lobbying for government union reform legislation in key states across the country. Just last week, Maxford Nelsen, the Freedom Foundation’s director of research and government affairs, testified before the Idaho House State Affairs Committee in support of House Bill 98.
If adopted, this Freedom Foundation-supported proposal would make teachers unions more accountable to both taxpayers and teachers by prohibiting school districts from:
- using public payroll systems and personnel to deduct union dues from teachers’ paychecks;
- contributing taxpayer funds to a teachers union;
- providing teachers with paid leave to engage in union operations and activism, unless the union reimburses the district for the value of the teacher’s time out of the classroom;
- paying teachers’ union dues for them with taxpayer funds.
The bill passed the Idaho House of Representatives last week by a vote of 40 to 29 and now moves to the Senate for consideration.
Union reforms at the state level are a critical tool in fighting the radical agenda of government unions.
