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Iowa Republican lawmakers passed a bill on Thursday that would eliminate most collective bargaining rights for public workers in the state, a move that echoed Wisconsin's signature 2011 legislation but drew considerably less public opposition at the Capitol.

The GOP-controlled Iowa House voted 53-47 for the bill, and the Republican-led state Senate followed with a 29-21 vote about an hour later. The measure now heads to GOP Gov. Terry Branstad, who backs it.

Labor organizers say the legislation, introduced publicly just over a week ago, effectively guts public sector unions in the state. The bill would make drastic changes to how public employees can negotiate over workings conditions. Multiple items of discussion including health insurance, evaluation procedures and extra pay would be prohibited.

The proposal is similar to Wisconsin's 2011 collective bargaining law that drew large demonstrations at the state Capitol. In Iowa, hundreds of people turned out at weekend forums to oppose the bill, which culminated with a large presence Monday night at the Capitol. But the building has been relatively empty since then, a stark contrast to the turnout in Wisconsin that made national headlines.

Following days of lengthy floor debates in Iowa, tension at the Capitol culminated with GOP lawmakers agreeing to force a final discussion on mirror legislation in the chambers. They utilized rare procedural motions to end near-simultaneous debate of the bill.

"Shameful!" yelled Democrats in the Senate in reaction to the fast-track moves. Lawmakers had been in the midst of a marathon floor debate that started Wednesday morning.

In the end, Democrats could do little to stop the GOP-backed measure. Democrats, in the minority following the November election, were kept in the dark about its details. The legislation moved through committees in the span of a few days.

"The biggest losers today are the people of Iowa, who have been silenced by this process in what is really an unprecedented maneuver," said Democratic Sen. Joe Bolkcom.

Republicans have repeatedly said the bill will give local governments more flexibility with their budgets to promote talented employees. Many based their assertion on anecdotal conversations with constituents.

Just before the House vote, GOP Rep. Steven Holt said Republicans called the bill "a win" that would provide greater accountability for all collective bargaining parties.

"We inadvertently created a system that discourages innovation and instead simply protects the status quo," Holt said of the 1974 law. "The changes to the scope of bargaining will help unleash innovation."

Union organizers have argued the current law already ensures employers have a fair seat at the table alongside workers. The Iowa State Education Association, which represents 34,000 Iowa school employees, said the system worked so well that more than 160 school districts had settled bargaining contracts in the past week as the bill was still being debated.

There are roughly 180,000 public sector employees in Iowa, including teachers, nurses and correctional officers. Public safety workers, such as enforcement officers and firefighters, would be exempt from some provisions of the bill.

However, those public safety workers would still be subject to a requirement that unions manually collect dues and that they hold more frequent elections on whether to dismantle. Legal experts who study labor issues say the move is aimed at financially crippling unions. Academics say the ripple effect is weakened unions with reduced membership, less financial stability and a smaller voice in state politics.

Since the collective bargaining law went into effect in Wisconsin, membership for both public and private unions in the state has dropped 40 percent.

Original post:
Iowa Republicans pass bill opponents say will gut public unions - Chicago Tribune