The 2007 AFT Public Employees Compensation Survey reaffirms that unionized workers with collective bargaining rights make better salaries.

Alaska, Connecticut, Illinois, New York and Montana are among the states where AFT Public Employees affiliates use the collective bargaining process to negotiate pay increases.

Collective bargaining gives workers a voice in the process from the start. Sitting down at the bargaining table with agency heads or the governor’s office, however, is just the first step in the process. Once an agreement has been reached between the union and the employer, the monetary components of the tentative collective bargaining agreement, including salary increases, are presented to the Legislature. If the Legislature approves the legislation that funds the pay increases, the measure is sent to the governor for approval.

In non-collective bargaining states, such as Colorado, Indiana and North Dakota, state employee salary increases are determined by the Legislature and the governor.

In either case, the bottom line is that AFT affiliates and members must pay attention to politics. Winning collective bargaining rights, securing pay increases that will make a government a competitive employer and electing candidates to office who value the work of public employees requires political and legislative activism.