Idaho legislator says teacher’s union lying about secret ballot bill
Published at | Updated at
BOISE — One Idaho legislator says a “false news narrative” is driving opposition to a proposed bill that would ensure secret ballot voting within teacher’s associations.
“I’ve had people contact me, and they are talking about issues that aren’t even related to the bill,” said freshman Rep. Dorothy Moon. “When I ask if they’ve read the bill, they haven’t. They are just spouting talking points from the union.”
Moon, R-Stanley, recently sponsored H0264, a bill aimed at changing the way teachers choose who represents them during contract negotiations with school boards. So far the bill hasn’t found much traction and is seeing significant opposition from the Idaho Education Association.
As a result, it has not been given a hearing. The bill is currently being redrafted and tweaked in hopes it will get a hearing in the House Education Committee before the end of the legislative session.
The bill — as currently written — would allow school boards to require an regular election by the association using secret ballots to prove the association represents the majority of district employees.
Idaho Code already requires an association to represent 50 percent plus one of all district employees to negotiate on their behalf for raises, insurance costs and employee policies.
Right now the process of gathering that majority is very public. During recruitment, teachers are given a card by their peers at meetings or at school and asked to mark if they want to become a member of the association or if they want the association to negotiate on their behalf.
Moon says some teachers don’t want their peers knowing about their association affiliation.
“Sometimes people aren’t comfortable signing up for the union on a card — they consider it a private issue,” Moon said.
Supporters of the bill say the current system lets association leadership target teachers who haven’t joined the union and pressure them into it.
A secret ballot, Moon said, would prove teachers are happy or unhappy with how they are being represented by the association. And if a majority were found to not support the association, teachers would have the option to seek other representation.
Moon said there is another, bigger reason to adopt secret ballots.
“Secret ballots are part of the Idaho Constitution, and we want to make sure we’re in alignment with it,” she said.
Secret ballots are addressed in Article 6 Section 1 of the Idaho Constitution:
“All elections by the people must be by ballot. An absolutely secret ballot is hereby guaranteed, and it shall be the duty of the legislature to enact such laws as shall carry this section into effect.”
Despite these arguments, the Idaho Education Association is wholly opposed to the bill. Its leaders say the bill is anti-union and unnecessary.
“This bill would effectively end collective bargaining for teachers in Idaho. Who’s next? The firefighters and other unions?” according to an IEA letter sent to members. “The current collective bargaining process, put into law by the Legislature in 2012, works well for both local associations and school districts. This legislation was not requested by any education group or reputable entity.”
In the letter, the IEA encourages its members to voice their opposition to the bill.
IEA leaders said they were unavailable to comment Wednesday and Thursday about their position on the proposal.
Moon said the claim that the bill would end collective bargaining is incorrect.
“That’s totally untrue,” Moon said. “It has nothing to do with collective bargaining. (The bill) simply allows the school board to make sure the union has the right to negotiate.”
As of Wednesday afternoon, several new drafts of the bill had been written, but a final draft was not yet approved.
It is unclear if or when the revised proposal will get a hearing in the Education Committee.
To read a copy of the prior version of the legislation, click here.