LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Criticism is mounting against a Nebraska bill that would change the state body that resolves labor impasses between public worker unions and employers.
The Platte Institute for Economic Research, a conservative Omaha-based think tank, argued Tuesday that proposed changes to the Nebraska Commission of Industrial Relations would not substantially reduce government spending. The executive director said the legislative proposal also could intrude on private businesses, because the commission might have to subpoena them to compare public and private sector wages.
Omaha Sen. Steve Lathrop has said his bill — created after months of talks with government and labor groups — represents the "comprehensive, significant and meaningful" changes Gov. Dave Heineman and commission critics have sought. Hastings Sen. Dennis Utter, a critic of the commission, called the bill a vast improvement over the current setup.
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A hearing on the bill is scheduled for Wednesday before the Legislature's Business and Labor Committee.
John McCollister, the institute's executive director, said the current proposal doesn't give local governments enough control over their budgets.
"We taxpayers should have some reasonable assurance of cost containment, and Nebraska's political subdivisions must have greater ability to exert control over the most significant portion of their respective budgets," McCollister said.
McCollister said his group isn't suggesting that the state get rid of the commission, unless officials fail to enact significant changes. Specifically, he said his group wants provisions that would give government managers greater authority to decide workplace staffing and safety requirements.
The commission can set salaries and benefits based on comparisons with similar jobs in other areas. The bill would allow commission members to include the value of health insurance and pension benefits when comparing employers. But McCollister said the commission also should be able to compare the cost of defined benefit retirement plans for workers and defined contribution plans, which shifts investment risk to employees.
The Platte Institute is led by Pete Ricketts, founder of an Omaha-based asset management company, a board member of the TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. and a former Republican U.S. Senate candidate. The group promotes limited government and free enterprise in Nebraska.
The commission, created in 1947 after a turbulent utility workers strike at the Lincoln Telephone Co., reviews about 25 cases a year.
Members have handled a range of disputes, ruling for employees in some cases and employers in others. In August, commission members ordered the city of Scottsbluff to reimburse its police officer bargaining unit for health insurance benefits it said were improperly withheld. In December, commission members ruled against an electrical workers union that challenged the Omaha Public Power District's tobacco-free workplace policy.
The compromise proposal, unveiled last month, includes several tweaks to the current commission. It would allow school districts to request a hearing if they believe they cannot afford wage increases set by the commission. Smaller school districts in designated teacher shortage areas or with under-achieving schools would have to negotiate financial incentives to retain and recruit new teachers.
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