The Business and Labor Committee heard testimony Feb. 7 on several proposed changes to the Nebraska Commission on Industrial Relations (CIR), the state\u2019s arbiter of labor disputes between public sector employees and government employers.<\/p>\n
Among proposals ranging from reform measures to abolishing the commission were two bills meant to improve collective bargaining procedures across all levels of Nebraska government.<\/p>\n
LB482, introduced by Hastings Sen. Dennis Utter, would place into state law the general guidelines under which the CIR operates in labor disputes involving municipalities in order to improve consistency and predictability.<\/p>\n
\u201cLB482 was not introduced because of the number of CIR cases involving cities,\u201d Utter said. \u201cOne of the main problems has been the lack of consistency in applying the guidelines from one municipal case to the next.\u201d<\/p>\n
Among the bill\u2019s provisions is language that would:<\/p>\n
Utter said the bill would help Nebraska municipalities deal with difficult labor disputes.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll cities \u2026 need to have clear rules in order to meet the state mandate of paying comparable wages and benefits,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Lincoln mayor Chris Beutler testified in support of LB482, saying the provision allowing health insurance and retirement benefits to be permissive subjects of bargaining was particularly important to the city.<\/p>\n
Four of the six Lincoln city unions have defined benefit retirement plans, Beutler said, and when the city could no longer afford the 2-to-1 matching contribution, all but one union negotiated a reduction. The CIR will not order a reduction in retirement contributions for the lone holdout union, he said, and without a change in state law the issue is at an impasse.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe CIR won\u2019t order changes in retirement contributions,\u201d Beutler said. \u201cA majority of our citizens find it unacceptable.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brenda Sutherland, human resources director for the city of Grand Island, also supported the bill. Grand Island has been to the CIR twice in the last 10 years for labor disputes, she said, with inconsistent results.<\/p>\n
\u201cCities and organized labor both need a clear understanding of the rules that apply to the CIR process,\u201d Sutherland said.<\/p>\n
Dalton Tietjen, a representative of various union groups, opposed the bill. Members of a working group composed of labor, management and the Legislature already have agreed to many of the changes outlined in LB482, he said, and talks are ongoing. Tietjen urged senators to wait for a bill with the full support of all parties to the process.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m quite confident that we are going to come to an agreement,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
A second bill, introduced by Scottsbluff Sen. John Harms<\/a>, seeks to provide a similar level of consistency and predictability to the CIR process in disputes involving the state college system, the university system and the state of Nebraska.<\/p>\n