Texas: Council Votes to Oppose Collective Bargaining
According to the Star-Telegram.com:
FORT WORTH -- The City Council voted 7-1 Tuesday to oppose a November ballot issue that would give Fort Worth firefighters collective-bargaining rights.
The proposal by Mayor Mike Moncrief and Councilwoman Kathleen Hicks opposes "collective bargaining initiatives from any city employee group or association."
Council members said collective-bargaining rights would create a divisive environment among employee groups and would make it difficult for the city when drafting budgets.
"This City Council has historically worked with all our employee groups," Moncrief said. "The vast majority of this council feels that collective bargaining by any employee group is not good for the city, especially for the taxpayers. It will be extremely costly to our taxpayers."
This year, the Fort Worth Professional Firefighters Association collected enough valid voter signatures to put the issue on the Nov. 6 ballot.
The city's police association brought a similar issue, called "meet and confer," to voters last year. Voters passed the issue, allowing the association to represent police employees in negotiations with the city.
The firefighters' proposal would give them greater negotiating powers than "meet and confer" because state law requires good faith in negotiations with associations that have collective-bargaining rights.
Firefighters are seeking collective-bargaining rights to protect retiree healthcare benefits, said Jim Tate, president of the firefighters association...click to continue.
