BOSTON — The Massachusetts Senate on Thursday passed a bill that would expand the rights of public-sector unions.
Unions would be allowed to charge nonmembers for representation in grievances. They would be guaranteed access to employees’ contact information and be allowed to meet with employees at their workplace.
The bill passed 38-1, with Sen. Ryan Fattman, R-Webster, as the sole no vote.
A version of the bill passed the House earlier this month, and it will now be up to the two bodies to reconcile the different versions.
The bill is a response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2018 decision in Janus vs. AFSCME, which ruled that government workers cannot be forced to pay union dues. Until the Janus decision, government workers whose workplaces were unionized did not have to join the union, but did have to pay “fair share” or “agency” fees to account for the fact that all workers benefit from the contract negotiated by the union.
“Today’s vote, which comes exactly one year after the misguided Janus ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court, makes clear that the Senate will always put hardworking families of Massachusetts first,” said Senate President Karen Spilka, D-Ashland, in a statement. “Public workers are the backbone of our economy and deserve the ability to fight for fair wages, access affordable health care and work in safe conditions.
Gov. Charlie Baker, a Republican, has voiced concerns with the bill as it was introduced in the Senate.
“In the wake of the Janus decision, the Baker-Polito Administration understands the need to permit unions to work with non-union members, but the current legislation goes further than addressing the issues created by the Supreme Court case, and the Administration hopes the Legislature considers adopting language to protect workers’ privacy, improve and streamline proposed requirements, and incorporates feedback from local government and public employers,” Baker spokesman Terry MacCormack said in a statement earlier this week.
MacCormack said, “The Administration is concerned the bill in its current form would threaten employees’ ability to control their personal information, and significantly alter the current relationship between managers and workers in local and state agencies.”
The Senate bill would let a public employee union charge a nonmember a fee for representing that person at a grievance or arbitration. A nonmember would be allowed to present a grievance without intervention by the union, as long as a union representative was allowed to be present at meetings and any adjustments made are not inconsistent with a collective bargaining agreement.
The Senate bill would give unions access to public employees’ personal information, including home address, email address and home or cellphone numbers. A union would be allowed to meet members at a workplace, to conduct meetings during lunch or breaks or before and after work, and to meet with newly hired employees for at least 30 minutes within 10 days after the date of hire. The union could use a public employer’s email system to communicate with members.
The bill has been controversial, with opponents arguing that it would open employees up to harassment by unions and compromise workers’ privacy by giving out their personal information.
Several Republican senators introduced amendments to limit unions’ rights under the bill — for example, requiring unions to get agreement from the employer about scheduling workplace meetings, eliminating provisions giving unions employees’ contact information and ensuring that no employee is required to meet with a union representative. All the amendments were rejected.
Labor and Workforce Development Committee Chair Sen. Pat Jehlen, D-Somerville, said in a statement, “Today we protect the right of unions to be able to make the case for membership to new hires, and to be compensated for representation they offer.”
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