Bill to Freeze Wages & Benefits During Negotiations on Fast Track

This bill was pushed by the Michigan Association of School Boards!!

House Bill 4152 passes out of committee--on a fast track in the Senate
HB 4152 was voted out of the Senate Education Committee this week after passing the House last week.
The bill is an outright attack on collective bargaining that would have a devastating financial impact on every teacher, support staff employee and public employees in general.
HB 4152 is an amendment to PERA that caps wages and benefits at the level in effect when a collective bargaining agreement expires and until a new contract is in place. Any benefit cost increases after the contract expired must be paid by employees. The bill also prohibits the school district from implementing any step increases. No retroactivity would be allowed in the new agreement.
The Senate Fiscal Agency Analysis sees the costs savings when it says, "A protracted negotiation period could yield significant savings if step increases were not paid and increased health care costs were passed on to employees during that time."
HB 4152 destroys the idea of good faith bargaining. There's no incentive for a school district to settle in a timely fashion.
Contact your senator with the message that HB 4152 is an outright attack on your right to bargain. The bargaining table can't be a shared playing field when the balance of power is taken away from you. This is just another example of looking for cost savings on the backs of the middle class. It's not right.

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