Illinois Labor Board hearing on unfair labor practice charges begins
The Illinois Labor Relations Board hearing on whether or not contract negotiations between 38,000 AFSCME-represented state employees and the Rauner Administration are truly at impasse began on Monday, April 25 in Springfield.
Gov. Rauner broke off contract talks in January, claiming that negotiations had reached an impasse. AFSCME disagreed, pointing out that union negotiators made clear they were prepared to continue to bargain. AFSCME filed Unfair Labor Practice charges against the Rauner Administration for bad faith bargaining. At the same time, the administration filed Unfair Labor Practice charges against the union for refusing to agree that an impasse exists, asking the Labor Board to allow the state to impose its own terms on employees without any further negotiations. If the board agrees with the governor, union members would have to either accept Rauner’s terms or go on strike.
“The governor is seeking to force state employees to pay double their current cost to keep their health care while getting zero pay increase for four years,” said AFSCME Council 31 Executive Director Roberta Lynch. Rauner’s terms would also wipe out existing protections against irresponsible privatization and institute a program of bonuses that opens the door to cronyism and favoritism in state government.
The Rauner Administration is putting intense pressure on the Labor Board to speed up the hearing process, trying to make it as difficult as possible for the union to have time to prepare and present its case. Although the board did not agree to the early start date for the hearings that the Rauner Administration sought, it did set exceptionally long hearing days—from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily. The administration also pushed to require that all testimony be submitted only in written form, rather than having witnesses testify as is the case in virtually all legal proceedings. The board did not limit the union to written testimony but did allow the state to submit its testimony in writing rather than calling its witnesses.
An administrative law judge at the board will hear arguments from both sides. The process is expected to continue throughout the coming weeks. Once the judge issues her decision, it must be affirmed by the full board.
“State employees have been crystal clear with Gov. Rauner—we are ready to negotiate,” said Lynch. “But unfortunately, the governor is determined to seek conflict in order to impose his harsh demands on hardworking public service workers.
“We believe we have a very compelling case to present to the board that argues convincingly that the governor should return to the bargaining table and work constructively to reach a fair contract settlement.”