The House passed House Bills 4354 and 4356-4357 last week by a vote of 56-53. Thank you to all who reached out and talked to your Representatives about your concerns with these bills, unfortunately, we were not successful in stopping the bills. The fight now moves the Senate.

As we’ve previously stated, we agree that some of the items in these bills should be returned to the bargaining table. However, we remain opposed to including teacher placement, layoff and recall, and discipline and discharge. There can be real consequences for students, staff and potential new teachers if these are removed. 

In addition to this package, two other bills passed that affect bargaining and discretion in staffing decisions. House Bill 4044, which would repeal Public Act 54 of 2011, was also passed by a party line vote. This act states that upon the expiration of a contract, step increases and health care contribution amounts are frozen until a new contract is in place. It also states that wages shall not be applied retroactively unless required by an arbitration panel or included in a negotiated bargaining agreement.

HB4044 would repeal those provisions and allow steps to go into effect even if a contract expires and would place the increased health care costs on the district. This becomes a bigger concern if HB4354 allows more issues to be put on the table, as it could then take longer to settle contracts, leading to expirations.

The final bill, House Bill 4820, was introduced on June 15th, brought up in committee on Tuesday, approved and sent to the floor, and passed by the full House later that day. It was an unfortunate timeline, as we were able to testify opposed but not able to work on the bill with anyone involved. MASB, along with 13 other education organizations, also turned in written testimony expressing our concerns. 

This bill would remove most of the factors to be considered when dealing with layoffs and recalls, it also adds teacher placement to the law. It appears to be aimed at ensuring that seniority is not the sole factor for either layoff or placement, but in making these changes it still fails in its goal, and instead creates additional issues related to layoff and recall.

The Senate Labor Committee held a hearing on last Thursday on HBs 4354-4357 and 4044 and approved the bills on Tuesday. They are now on the Senate Floor for a vote. 

We urge you to now contact your Senator 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, maintain your budgets in lean times and collective bargaining as a whole. We have alerts on our website you can use to find talking points and contact your legislator.