April
4, 2002
Yes!
Gov. Locke fixes and signs Faculty CB bill
In an historic move that climaxes a 30 year
campaign, Governor Locke today signed SHB 2403 giving faculty at the state's
4-year colleges and universities the right to unionize and engage in collective
bargaining. Using his power of partial veto, he removed sections 2 and 5 from
the bill. The removed sections contained the poison pill amendment that would
have forced faculties to abolish their faculty senates if they wished to engage
in collective bargaining. The now signed bill is similar to the new law that
permits collective bargaining for TAs and RAs.
VICTORY comes after three decades of work by
AAUP and the Faculty Senate and there are many people who deserve our thanks
and gratitude. First among them are Dick Ludwig and Wendy Rader-Kanofalski who
have spent the past six months writing, negotiating, and lobbying the bill.
Dick, representing the Faculty Senate, and Wendy representing the faculty
unions at Eastern and Central, forged the complicated coalition of faculty
senates and administrations of the six campuses and were in Olympia almost
constantly during the session, baby-sitting the bill from one committee to
another and through its final complicated passage into law.
Brad Holt and Mary Coney, chairs of the
Faculty Senate this year and last, also played critical roles. They negotiated
the breakthrough agreement with President McCormick last year and Brad worked
continuously behind the scenes as the bill was written and lobbied. Secretary
of the Faculty Lea Vaughn, Deputy Legislative Rep Jan Sjavik, and Senate Vice
Chair, Sandy Silberstein also deserve congratulations.
None of this would have been possible
without President McCormick. His decision to work with the Senate on the bill
reversed 30 years of administration opposition to enabling legislation. It was
a courageous and difficult move. It is not often that AAUP finds reason to
applaud the central administration. This is one of those happy occasions.
President McCormick has demonstrated a new kind of leadership in the past few
years. His willingness to work with the Faculty Senate on this and other
matters shows a respect for the principles of shared governance that is
refreshing and admirable.
FRIENDS IN THE LEGISLATURE worked miracles
to get this bill passed. In the House, Representatives Phyllis Kenney and Steve
Conway sponsored the bill and never backed off. They were joined by all of
their fellow democrats and some courageous Republicans, notably Tom Campbell
and Fred Jarrett. Speaker Frank Chopp took charge of the final maneuvers that
ensured passage.
The Senate was where the battle was the
toughest. Senators Jeanne Kohl-Welles and Margarita Prentice and were
absolutely brilliant, working the bill at every step and saving it after the
McDonald amendment passed. Lisa Brown, Paul Shinn, Darlene Fairley, Ken
Jacobsen, Adam Kline, Karen Keiser, and Erik Poulsen head a long list of other
Democrats who also deserve thanks. Republicans Shirley Winsley, Don Carlson,
and Pam Roach supported the McDonald amendment that almost wrecked the bill,
but their willingness to vote for the bill on final passage was critical to
ultimate outcome.
To all of these legislators and to Governor
Locke we say thank you. In this year of nightmare budgets, there has not been
much to cheer. But this session will be remembered as the one that finally
fixed the flaw in Washington state law that for so many years has left faculty
and teaching assistants without the customary rights enjoyed by other
employees.
Next year maybe the legislature will finish
the job and extend collective bargaining rights to librarians and professional
staff.