Thursday, June 29, 2006
A Law That Won’t Be Reformed
Though it is clear that he granted an extremely favorable deal with the City firefighter union in 2001 to win their political endorsement, the former Mayor of Pittsburgh won’t be charged with a crime. Instead, he will be asked to participate in further inquires from the U.S. Attorney General’s office, including lending his suggestions as to how the state’s public safety collective bargaining law should be improved.
That’s like asking Bonnie and Clyde how to strengthen bank security.
Of course the law, Act 111, needs scads of improvement. Our 2005 report looked at the law and the laws in neighboring states and found that 111 is clearly stacked in favor of public sector unions. It makes no sense to have the parties go to arbitration without any meaningful mediation or fact-finding; or that the parties get to pick the arbitrators; or that there is virtually no criteria guiding the process on salaries, benefits, and the like. The process needs to work more like a court of law with a neutral arbitrator and the ability to start from zero salaries and benefits.
Despite those facts, don’t look for any movement toward changing the law, even with the Feds peeking in. There has nary been any state-level inquiry into how to improve Act 111 since the late 1970s. The members of the General Assembly clearly are not interested in touching it. A spokesperson from the House Speaker’s office even stated that “as of right now, there are no changes [to the act] being looked at.” She could have added that as long as the current Speaker holds his office, Act 111 will never be reformed.
As such, the U.S. Attorney’s trading criminal charges from the 2001 deal with the fire union for making Act 111 better was a bad deal.
That’s like asking Bonnie and Clyde how to strengthen bank security.
Of course the law, Act 111, needs scads of improvement. Our 2005 report looked at the law and the laws in neighboring states and found that 111 is clearly stacked in favor of public sector unions. It makes no sense to have the parties go to arbitration without any meaningful mediation or fact-finding; or that the parties get to pick the arbitrators; or that there is virtually no criteria guiding the process on salaries, benefits, and the like. The process needs to work more like a court of law with a neutral arbitrator and the ability to start from zero salaries and benefits.
Despite those facts, don’t look for any movement toward changing the law, even with the Feds peeking in. There has nary been any state-level inquiry into how to improve Act 111 since the late 1970s. The members of the General Assembly clearly are not interested in touching it. A spokesperson from the House Speaker’s office even stated that “as of right now, there are no changes [to the act] being looked at.” She could have added that as long as the current Speaker holds his office, Act 111 will never be reformed.
As such, the U.S. Attorney’s trading criminal charges from the 2001 deal with the fire union for making Act 111 better was a bad deal.
