State Employee Unions: Who is Allowed to Strike?

Late last year, the Illinois Labor Relations Board declared negotiations between AFSCME and the Governor’s Office to be “at an impasse,” allowing the Governor to implement his “last and best” offer to the union. After a swift appeal from AFSCME, an Illinois Appeals Court ruled late last week that until the appeal reaches a resolution, the Governor will not be permitted to impose his terms on state employees. 

On Feb. 23, before the 4th District Court of Appeals issued their recent ruling, members of Illinois’s largest public employee union, AFSCME Council 31, voted to authorize a strike. Of the union’s 38,000 members, 28,000 were eligible to vote on authorizing a strike.

Those not eligible include corrections and juvenile justice workers who cannot strike under Illinois law. About 80% of eligible workers voted, and 81% of voting members expressed their desire to authorize a strike. While the Court of Appeals decision certainly delayed the possiblity of a strike, and the vote does not ensure any action from the union, the issue is far from resolved.

Recent State Employee Strikes in the U.S.
This week, ICPR’s research team looked into state employee strikes in the U.S. In general, these types of large-scale strikes are not very common. The last time a large state employee strike was publicized in the U.S. was in 2001.That year, state employee unions of 28,000 workers each in Minnesota and Washington went on strike to advocate for higher wages.

Technically, public employee strikes are not permitted under Washington state law, as shown in the chart below. However, the law does not establish any specific penalties for striking, leaving some gray area for union members when deciding if they should go on strike. Minnesota statutes give all public employees, except essential personnel, the right to strike under certain circumstances.

In 2012, AFSCME nearly went on strike, but ultimately came to an agreement with Governor Pat Quinn (D) at the eleventh hour. Similarly, California’s pubic employee union, SIEU Local 100, periodically plans strikes, but none have actually occurred in recent history. Most recently, in December 2016, the California union voted to go on strike, but reached a deal with Governor Jerry Brown (D) and cancelled the planned walkouts.

Other notable state employee strikes occurred in Oregon in 1995, Hawaii in 1994, and Montana in 1991. Oregon was the largest strike of the three, with approximately 18,000 state workers participating.

Which States Allow Public Employees to Strike?
13 states explicitely allow all or some public employees to strike as part of their collective bargaining rights. In most of these states, all public employees except “essential personnel” may strike.

In Illinois, “essential personnel” includes “security employees, peace officers, fire fighters, and paramedics.” Nine other states have similar policies restricting essential personnel from employee strikes: Alaska, California, Louisiana, Minnesota, Montana, Oregon, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wyoming.

Hawaii is the only state that allows all state employees to strike, including all essential personnel. In Vermont, teachers and municipal employees may strike, but state employees cannot. In Colorado, only teachers are given the right to strike based on a court ruling in 1992. All other public employees are prohibited from striking by a 2007 Executive Order.

Of the 13 states that allow all or some public employees to strike, all of them are considered “union states,” except for Louisiana and Wyoming, which are considered “right-to-work” states.

Conclusion
If negotiations fall through and state employees decide to go on strike in Illinois, it would be the largest strike of its kind in the country since 2001. In the majority of states, public employees do not have the right to strike. Although public employee strikes are rare, when they do occur, the effects are felt in many ways. Striking is an important tool for state employee unions in contract negotiations, even if they are mostly avoided until absolutely necessary.