Posts tagged Colorado Municipal League
Public workers who exercise free speech will be protected under new Colorado law
July 5, 2023 // Queer workers, workers of color, women, mothers, parents — all tend to feel retaliation a lot harder in the workplace. – Jade Kelly, of Communications Workers of America 7799 It follows a change to state law last year that gave employees in large Colorado counties the right to unionize and collectively bargain. That effort initially included a larger portion of public-sector workers, but it was pared down during the legislative process. “It shows testament to workers’ power on the rise,” said Jade Kelly, president of Communications Workers of America 7799, a coalition of several unions across Colorado, about the passage of SB-111. “We were organized, testifying in committees and making sure that workers’ voices were heard at the Capitol in a concentrated, meaningful way.” Queer workers, workers of color, women, mothers, parents — all tend to feel retaliation a lot harder in the workplace. – Jade Kelly, of Communications Workers of America 7799 The bill is personal for Kelly as well. She said that she requested a gender neutral bathroom several years ago at her University of Colorado Boulder job, but she was told that accommodation would be a security threat. Kelly, who is a transgender woman, spoke with her coworkers and they started organizing, only to be told by leadership that the group could be fired for taking action.
Colorado passes unionization law
June 20, 2023 // The law emphasizes the rights of public employees to join a public union, including county or municipal workers, general assembly staffers, school district employees, higher education employees, public defenders’ officers, University of Colorado and Denver hospital authorities, fire authorities, and members of a board of cooperative services.
Polis, Democratic lawmakers and local governments are all squaring off over public bargaining rights
February 20, 2022 // Today, only 15 of Colorado’s 272 municipalities have collectively bargained agreements with any part of their workforce, and almost all of those contracts are with police and firefighters. Just about a quarter of school districts have collective bargaining, too.
Polis throws cold water on public unions bill
January 21, 2022 // Colorado: A bill to allow public employees to engage in collective bargaining has run into its biggest hurdle: lack of support from Gov. Jared Polis
Thousands of local government employees could get union rights in Colorado
December 14, 2021 // “Collective bargaining is a fundamental right that should be available to all Coloradans regardless of where they work. Our current laws actually deny this basic right to some of the most important workers in our state, including to tens of thousands of local public employees,” said House Majority Leader Daneya Esgar