An attempt by North Dakota’s human resources division to gut public employees’ job protections met stiff opposition from the North Dakota Public Employees Association (NDPEA), an affiliate of AFT Public Employees.

“They were clearly trying to give agency heads more ‘flexibility,’” says Chris Runge, NDPEA executive director. “They miscalculated what our response was going to be.”

That response: Thousands of state employees mobilized against the proposed changes, sending NDPEA-produced postcards to the division’s director in protest. The proposed changes would have weakened the requirement that an agency use progressive discipline, changed the definition of “cause,” gutted the reduction-in-force rules by deleting seniority rights, and immobilized the reemployment rights of state employees after a layoff.

“You don’t have a right to bargain a contract so the civil service rules are all the job protections you have,” Runge told several hundred state employees in Bismarck during a membership meeting in March, when the union launched its campaign. If the proposed rule changes go through, Runge warned that “public employees will essentially become political appointees.”

Behind the scenes, union officials met with legislators, in addition to Gov. John Hoeven, to lobby against the changes. When push came to shove, the state employees came out on top.

Jerry Neis, an NDPEA vice president, spotlighted the victory during a convention celebration of AFT’s organizing wins and membership growth that emphasized the importance of mobilizing members to build a strong, effective union.

“We mobilized thousands of state employees and got the media to carry our message,” said Neis during the celebration led by AFT secretary-treasurer Nat LaCour.