By Adam Allington, KWMU
St. Louis, MO – Some Missouri Democrats are pushing legislation that would grant collective bargaining rights to state workers.
Last spring the Missouri Supreme Court ruled that public employees have the same right as other workers to bargain collectively .
Governor Matt Blunt opposes the idea, arguing that taxpayers should say how much state employees are paid, not labor unions
Democratic State Representative Maria Chappelle-Nadal of University City said passing the bill would actually save money by helping welfare workers manage case loads faster.
"We've produced a legislation that would effectively help what's going on in some of our state office buildings," Chappelle-Nadal said. "So it's up to the Republican side to actually take advantage of this opportunity and ultimately save dollars."
In addition to collective bargaining, the bill would also establish a process for state workers to air grievances on a range of concerns; however strikes would be illegal.
Bradley Harmon is a representative for the Missouri State Workers Union.
He said issues of salary are a main concern, since Missouri ranks toward the bottom in employee pay.
"As a result, turnover in many critical state agencies, including the Department of Social Services, has been very very high," Harmon said.
The bill is not popular with conservative lawmakers, and many speculate that it won't advance under the current Republican majority.
Governor Matt Blunt rescinded collective-bargaining rights for state employees in 2005, undoing an executive order issued by his Democratic predecessor, Bob Holden.