April 28, 2017
Sen. Jeremy Miller
95 University Avenue W.
Minnesota Senate Bldg., Room 3107
St. Paul, MN 55155
Rep. Pat Garofalo
485 State Office Buildin g
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Saint Paul, Minnesota 55155
Chairman
Miller and Chairman Garofalo:
We, the undersigned unions, are writing to urge you to adopt the Governor’s position of providing the investment needed for the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) to begin operating.
In
order to properly function, the PERB will need additional resources. The increase in the PERB
budget is needed to begin accepting and processing unfair labor practice (ULP) charges. Prior to the creation of the PERB, the unfair labor practice provisions of PELRA were largely unenforced. Now that employees and employers have an accessible forum to challenge ULPs, we need to make sure the process
is adequately funded to offer meaningful remedies. Of the 35 states that have unfair labor practices, 32 of them use an administrative process similar to the one we are currently undertaking here.
In
addition to this necessary funding request,
the PERB is also proposing legislative amendments to the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act and the Open Meeting Law. The language will provide clear guidance to entities and individuals filing or defending ULP charges. It also clarifies that public employers can share private personnel data with the PERB during the investigation of a ULP charge. Lastly, it exempts the PERB from the Open Meeting law under specific circumstances, such as deliberations.
The creation of the PERB was a significant step forward in bringing the protections of PELRA to employees and employers, and it is extremely important that the PERB be successful.
Sincerely,
Education Minnesota
MN Assoc of Professional Employees
AFSCME
Council 5
Inter
Faculty Organization
MN State College Faculty
MN Nurses Association
Service Employees International Union Local 284
Teamsters 320
Saint Paul Police Federation
Minnesota Conservation Officers Assoc
Woodbury Police Officer's Assoc
Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis
Middle Management Association
Law Enforcement Labor Services, Inc.
MN Government Engineering Council
