Rauner asks his labor board to determine if union contract talks at impasse

Kim Geiger, Monique Garcia and Celeste Bott  Reporter

Chicago Tribune

01/15/2016

As he courted voters in central Illinois nearly two years ago, candidate Bruce Rauner took the microphone at a Lincoln Day dinner and warned that he might "take a strike and shut down the government for a few weeks" to win new contracts with unionized state workers.

On Friday, the Republican governor moved a step closer to that prediction when he referred his dispute with the largest state employee union to a labor panel whose members he appoints.

Rauner asked the Illinois Labor Relations Board to determine whether his administration and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 31 have reached a stage in negotiations that would allow him to bypass further talks and impose his own terms on the roughly 38,000 state workers the union represents.

The review process could take months, and Rauner and the union have a deal to keep workers on the job in the meantime. But if Rauner ultimately succeeds in putting a stop to the talks, the union will have to decide whether to go on strike for the first time ever.

Melissa Mlynski, the labor board's executive director, said the panel has taken a first step in considering Rauner's question, assigning an investigator to look into the matter.

In referring the dispute to the board, the Rauner administration contended that AFSCME "refused to seriously negotiate for the 24th bargaining session in a row on any of the core contract proposals presented" by the governor's negotiators.

AFSCME Council 31 Executive Director Roberta Lynch said the union is still interested in negotiating and accused Rauner of trying to end the talks prematurely.

"We reject the claim that the bargaining process is at an impasse," Lynch said. "The members of AFSCME's rank-and-file elected bargaining committee have consistently responded to the administration's demands with fair counterproposals."

At issue are the terms of a new contract to replace the one that expired June 30. Rauner wants to limit overtime, freeze pay increases and charge workers more for their health plans. AFSCME wants higher wages and is opposed to a Rauner plan to create a merit pay system.

The two sides had been negotiating for months under an agreement that neither would initiate a work stoppage without first taking the matter to the labor board.

Meanwhile, Rauner struck deals with 17 other bargaining units that represent smaller portions of the state government workforce. Rauner argues that AFSCME is being unreasonable in rejecting his offers when other unions have accepted them. AFSCME contends that its workers have been offered a lesser deal.

"In any event, no union can be forced to accept the terms of other unions that have different circumstances and concerns," AFSCME's Lynch said in a statement.

Talks broke down last week when Rauner's negotiators presented a "last, best and final offer." Rauner stopped short of publicly declaring an impasse — a technical move that would set the stage for him to impose his own terms — and instead asked the labor board to decide if an impasse has been reached, citing a prior agreement with the union that the two sides would defer to the labor board on that question.

At the same time, Rauner made his position clear in a letter to state employees.

"AFSCME has no intention of ever reaching a deal at the table," Rauner wrote. "Our efforts at responding to AFSCME's concerns and producing thoughtful proposals were rejected. We are no closer today than we were 12 months ago. Taxpayers will not be served by further sessions."

Rauner could have an advantage over the union at the labor board, because he appointed four of its five members. Two of those appointees, however, are members who first joined the board under Rauner's Democratic predecessors. Board appointees also are confirmed by the Senate, which is controlled by Democrats.

This is the first time the board has ever been asked to consider whether the state and AFSCME are at an impasse. But it's not the first time the board has been asked to weigh in on the disputes between Rauner and the union. Last year, AFSCME filed two charges with the board, asserting that the administration had violated state labor law in its dealings with the union. One was denied and another is still pending.

Rauner's request for review on the impasse question goes first to the board's executive director, who will decide whether to grant or deny a hearing in front of an administrative law judge. If such a hearing is granted, the judge will issue a recommendation, which can be overturned by the board of appointees. If a hearing is denied, the board can overrule that decision, too.

The Rauner administration has told employees that it could be months before a final decision is made. And if the labor board decides an impasse has been reached, AFSCME already has indicated it might turn to the courts to try to force Rauner back to the negotiating table.

Robert Bruno, a professor of labor and employment relations at the University of Illinois, said while unprecedented, it's not surprising the administration would push for a declaration of an impasse while the union maintains there's still room to negotiate.

"Unions want to use their collective bargaining process. The law exists so workers collectively have enough power to have a voice in their working conditions. They want the process to work, they don't want something to short-circuit that," Bruno said. "I rarely see a situation where the employer is more committed to bargaining than the union."

Still, Bruno said the move is not without risks for Rauner.

"If you can demonstrate you are at an impasse, you are now free from having to bargain and now have the potential of unilaterally getting what you want," Bruno said. "But it comes with a risk, and the risk is the union is able to strike," he said.

The dispute is only the latest in an ongoing quarrel between Rauner and the union.

As a candidate, Rauner blasted state workers as overpaid compared to those in the private sector and sold himself as someone who would stand up to "government union bosses." In his first month in office, Rauner tried to use his executive powers to keep public employee unions from collecting fees from nonunion workers, calling the fee structure a "critical cog in the corrupt bargain that is crushing taxpayers." An Illinois judge put a stop to that effort, but Rauner has weighed in on a similar case that is before the U.S. Supreme Court.

AFSCME, meanwhile, spent heavily against Rauner when he was running for governor and has been pouring money into Democratic campaign funds to help protect its General Assembly allies in this year's elections. Since the beginning of 2015, AFSCME Council 31 and its affiliates gave nearly $400,000 to Democratic legislative leadership funds, individual Democratic lawmakers and local candidates, including some Chicago aldermanic candidates last year.