Newly inaugurated Republican governors in Indiana and Missouri have repealed collective bargaining rights for state employees, negating or threatening current contracts for thousands of workers in those states.

In Indiana, Gov. Mitch Daniels on Jan. 11 rescinded the collective bargaining rights and contracts of 23,000 state employees, including 14,000 workers represented by the Unity Team, a joint local of the AFT and the United Auto Workers.

Indiana state employees gained collective bargaining rights in 1989 through an executive order signed by Gov. Evan Bayh. Every governor since has honored that order, which permits state employees to negotiate pay, benefits and work rules.

Daniels declined to renew the order, however, and also issued executive orders invalidating existing labor agreements, reports the Indianapolis Star. Those contracts had been scheduled to run through June 2007.

Gov. Daniels' action affects some 35,000 executive branch employees, two-thirds of whom are represented by unions, including the Unity Team and AFSCME.

"This is a dark day for the people of Indiana," said AFT president Edward J. McElroy in a statement. "Collective bargaining is a process that benefits taxpayers as much as it does state employees.  It brings with it higher quality services, more efficient government and improved quality of life for all of Indiana's citizens.  Gov. Daniel's move is a leap in the wrong direction."

Missouri's new Republican Gov. Matt Blunt also repealed his predecessor's executive order granting bargaining rights to state employees. In 2001, Democratic Gov. Bob Holden issued an order giving some Missouri state employees the right to union representation for contract negotiations. Holden's order was not fully implemented, and if it had remained, it would also have permitted unions to collect fair share fees from workers they represented.

About 9,000 state employees are represented by AFSCME and SEIU in the state. While the unions can still represent employees, there is no guaranteed collective bargaining process to allow them to reach a binding contract, reports the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. [Kathy Walsh, AFT public affairs, Indianapolis Star, St. Louis Post-Dispatch]

January 12, 2005