Since the NLRA was enacted, the fundamental policy of the United States was to encourage collective bargaining. But here in loony RONALD DION DeSANTIS's "free state," collective bargaining rights are under attack. From Tallahassee Democrat/GANNETT:
Tallahassee judge won't temporarily block new state law critics claim is union busting
Tarah JeanAfter suing the state over a new law its critics have called union-busting, a Tallahassee judge has handed a loss to Florida A&M University's faculty union, which is challenging the legislation.
On Tuesday, Circuit Judge Jonathan Sjostrom denied its request for a temporary injunction, which would have put a short-term block on the law's enforcement.
In his order, he wrote that the state's new certification processes aren't so "onerous as to effect a practical elimination of union representation."
This comes after the United Faculty of Florida and its FAMU chapter filed a complaint against the Public Employees Relations Commission (PERC) in September. That followed the failure of the university's dues-paying union members to meet a new certification threshold. PERC is the Florida state agency that adopts and enforces regulations related to bargaining units.
More:FAMU faculty union sues state over law making it tougher to certify membership
While the state law (SB 256) requires public unions to cross a 60% membership threshold to remain certified compared to the previous 50% requirement, the FAMU union chapter recorded that 56.6% of the university's faculty paid their dues.
If the new standard is not met, the union is decertified. The law was signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis and went into effect in July.
"This is a fairly straight-forward dispute, although a constitutional case of first impression," Sjostrom wrote.
The FAMU faculty union's complaint included a request for the Florida law to be declared unconstitutional. The case has yet to be decided on its merits.
Contact Tarah Jean at tjean@tallahassee.com or follow her on X: @tarahjean_.
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