COMMENT RESCUE: Legislative Staff Seeks To Organize
This is big, and will also be a fascinating dynamic into the relationship between staff and legislators. Particularly Democratic legislators. The Reverend RE Vanella tipped us off to this:
https://prospect.org/labor/historic-union-drive-makes-delaware-first-state-again/
Allow me to borrow some of the delicious particulars from this must-read piece:
On Tuesday, state legislative workers in Delaware announced a union drive on the first day of the new session, requesting voluntary recognition from state legislative leaders. Organizers from the Delaware General Assembly Union said on Monday night that a majority of legislative workers have already signed union cards, although Republican legislative staffers—as well as legislative leaders—only found out about the union drive on Tuesday morning. The proposed unit would be affiliated with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Council 81, and would include 44 staffers, including two nonpartisan staffers who work for the Delaware House and Senate clerks.
I can’t tell you how much I love this proposal. Actually, I can. Legislative staff have historically been exempted from the State Merit System, and have been subject to dismissal without any cause having to be presented. Someone gets a bug up their butt in caucus, and you’re gone. I know, that’s how my legislative staff career ended after more than 20 years. Val Longhurst popped down to my office, started ripping posters off the wall, and told me I had 20 minutes to vacate the premises. I was merely the first in her/their ‘at will’ purge, not the last.
I just can’t wait to see how the D legislative leadership reacts to this. Can you imagine people like Pete, Val and Nicole subject to grievance procedures? But, if they actively fight this, they will expose themselves as hypocrites.
Will they still be able to instruct employees to take their ‘vacation’ time to work on campaigns, which was required during my time there?
This is so fascinating that I know there’s a zillion questions I haven’t yet thought of.
A fun year just got infinitely–funner.
But they’re appointed and serve at the pleasure of. I can understand clerks and secretaries, but some political legislative aide who only got the job because they worked on a campaign? There are tons of state employees who are legit professional staff, are merit employees, and have a competitive hiring process, and make half of what these folks make with far harder jobs who are not unionized yet. For this group to get that privilege before them because they are closest to the legislature is the epitome of the Delaware Way. And just because they are your informants and friends, does not make it right. IMHO Every state employee should be unionized.
Don’t think I have any informants among the current staff. Friends? I hope.
I take your points, though. I, too, want to know how the process will work. Although ‘just working on a campaign’ does not get you a plum assignment.
I was taking a shot in the dark that you had some spies in the hall.
It was a nice try. I admire it. I don’t spill the beans that easily.
Every state employee should be unionized, so it’s a weird flex to criticize the ones who – at some professional risk – organized this.
If you think this was somehow risk free or within the Delaware Way because these folks are closest to the legislators is not accurate.
This is more or less unprecedented. And I’m the cynical one?
A select few legislators have been mistreating staff for years. The firing of a young staffer last year for dubious reasons seems to be a key genesis of this movement. Anyone who wants a union should have one, so good luck to them. Wonder how pro-Union the leadership will be in their dealings with staff reps.
I like that this catches them between their public ass-kissing of the trades unions and reality.
I wonder if this would have happened had Pete and Val not come in with the intent of scaring the shit out of the staff.
scaring the shit out of the staff was the game plan? What are they reading, “Leona Helmsley’s Guide to Management”.
They decided that ‘collegiality’ had no place in a political body, and set out to prove it. This is not just sour grapes. They ran people out of that building if they could think for themselves.
Tizzy Lockman’s reaction?:
“Right on!”
Madinah Wilson-Anton’s reaction?:
“As a former legislative staffer I know too well the stresses of working in a non-merit position where your job security is non-existent.”
Both from this News-Journal piece:
https://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/politics/2020/01/14/delaware-general-assembly-staff-announces-unionization-ahead-2020-session/4465449002/
Leg staff are non-merit, but not appointed. They don’t serve at the pleasure per say. (There are some semantics here and sure i can debate you, i won’t though) This effort moves to make them the professional staff we know them to be. It also makes it so the rules they have, the working conditions they like, are enforced and fair and equitable and can’t be changed because someone’s coffee wasn’t right yesterday.
All state employees are at-will UNLESS they have a Collective Bargaining Agreement. It doesn’t matter if they have merit rules or not. Anyone tried to go through a merit grievance procedure for unjust termination without an attorney or union rep? Next to impossible.
Saying your pro-labor and being pro-labor, those are two different things, two important but distinctly different things.
Feel free to reach out, happy to discuss any aspect.
-Kat Caudle, AFSCME Council 81 (too many hats to wear, but in this case, lead organizer)
One small addendum: All employees in the state who don’t have collective bargaining protection or a contract are at-will employees. Another thing that wouldn’t be the case if this state were liberal rather than captive to a feckless Democratic Party — or, rather, a Democratic Party still in the hands of feckless politicians.
I’m thrilled that you’re doing this.
All I can say is that, I was hired by the Caucus (actually a couple of caucuses) and I was presumably fired by the House Caucus. So, I’m not quite sure how it’s ‘not by the pleasure per se’.
Yes, I had strong educational and professional credentials, as did my cohorts, and I loved the work, if not always the people I worked for. Although there were quite a few who I really liked and still admire.
As you said, it’s not about semantics (or even as former Gov. Tribbitt said ‘ceramics’), it’s about protecting the rights of some great people who work selflessly on the behalf of the public.
I do have a question which the articles didn’t answer. Are Legislative Council and the Controller’s General’s office among those seeking unionization?