Video of press conference held at the General Assembly March 24, 2009
The HOPE Coalition held a press conference on March 24th to urge members of the NC House and Senate to support the repeal of the ban against public sector collective bargaining rights.
News Brief
A Vestige of Jim Crow
Best way to mark 50 years of GS95-98: "relegate this embarrassment to the dustbin of history," says David Zonderman, NCSU
We Ask Only for Fairness
Video of remarks by MaryBe McMillan, NC AFL-CIO, April 18, 2009
For half a century now, North Carolina General Statute 95-98 has denied our public employees - our teachers, firefighters, police officers et al. - the ability to use traditional methods to improve their working conditions and benefits or even to maintain them.
NCGS 95-98 makes it illegal for any agent of the State of North Carolina to enter into a contract with any bargaining agent chosen by public employees - essentially outlawing democracy at work.
Public employees of state and local governments provide essential services to the citizens of North Carolina. Everyday these civil servants deliver for the people of our great state. It's time for our elected leaders to value their hard work by repealing NCGS 95-98 and standing up for democracy on the job. It's time for HOPE.
View all the signatures gathered to-date. Not on the list? Add your name, today!
Hear Us
North Carolina public employees - both state and local - should have the right to bargain collectively for enforceable agreements that govern the terms and conditions of their employment, a right already enjoyed by most private sector workers in our state. We have formed this coalition to help gain this fundamental right for all North Carolina public employees.
Our goal as a coalition is to repeal North Carolina General Statue 95-98, which currently prohibits such agreements. We invite all North Carolinians who agree to join in making this goal a reality.
From the F.A.Q.
Will collective bargaining lead to strikes?
Most states, including NC, have laws prohibiting strikes by public employees. (One state, Ohio, does not prohibit strikes by public employees, but the law regulates the method for seeking approval to strike from the courts.)
These laws do not necessarily prevent strikes. When conditions become so bad, or when there exists a situation that is an obvious and outrageous injustice, public employees will strike.
The same is true in NC. In one study conducted between January 1968 and June 1970, there were twenty-six strikes, sick outs, slowdowns or work stoppages in NC public agencies, amounting to 10,433 lost worker-days (see Question #6).
Public policy analysts contend that the prohibition against collective bargaining (G.S. 95-98) actually fosters strikes and work stoppages by preventing disputes from being resolved.
UE Local 150, the North Carolina Public Service Workers Union, is a democratic, member-run union representing employees throughout North Carolina - including municipal workers; public servants in NC's universities, psychiatric hospitals, and DHHS special treatment centers; employees of the NC Department of Administration; and machine workers in Whitakers, NC.
UE Local 150 is dedicated to rank-and-file unionism, which means that our union is run from the ground up, in a democratic and collective manner. Our members set the policies and make all of the decisions of importance that affect our union.
Our union is a local of the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America, is an independent, democratic, rank-and-file union representing workers in both the private and public sectors across the United States.
