The House Labor Committee is holding a hearing on a package of bills to repeal some of the prohibited subjects of bargaining currently in the Public Employment Relations Act. It is expected to only hold one hearing and following testimony, send the bills to the full House for consideration. We urge you to contact your Representative and express concerns with these changes.

House Bill 4354 would repeal teacher placement, layoff and recalls, teacher evaluation, employee discharge or discipline, classroom observations, merit pay, and how to notify parents about ineffective teachers. House Bill 4356 would repeal privatization of noninstructional support services. House Bills 4555 and 4357 amend references to the Michigan School Code to reflect these changes. Removing these items from the prohibited subjects list means they would then be mandatory subjects of bargaining when working on a collective bargaining agreement.  

We, along with MASA, MAISA and others, have raised concerns with the bill sponsors, committee members and other representatives about repealing some of these issues, particularly teacher placement, layoff and recall, and discipline and discharge. MASB Executive Director Don Wotruba and MASA Executive Director Dr. Tina Kerr also wrote an OpEd piece about the proposal, sharing their opinion that legislators must equip school governance officials with the tools they need and not create policies that will negatively impact our most vulnerable students. 

We urge you to reach out to your Representative and share the effect these bills will have on your district, the ability to make sure the right teachers are in front of the right students, and collective bargaining as a whole. The House could debate and vote on these bills as early as Thursday afternoon. 

We have an alert on our website you can use to find talking points and contact your legislator.