Representative Robert DeLeo (left) and Governor Deval Patrick yesterday at a bill signing in Marlborough.
(CHRISTINA CATURANO FOR THE BOSTON GLOBE)
Patrick signs bill to ease union organizing
Representative Robert DeLeo (left) and Governor Deval Patrick yesterday at a bill signing in Marlborough.
(CHRISTINA CATURANO FOR THE BOSTON GLOBE)
Union organizing just got easier for government employees in Massachusetts. Governor Deval Patrick signed a bill yesterday that allows employees to organize through "card check" drives, rather than secret ballots.
Union officials applauded the measure, which had been vetoed by Governor Mitt Romney last year and denounced by some business leaders, who said workers would be intimidated into voting in favor of unionizing. Similar legislation in Congress is backed by Senator Edward M. Kennedy and others, but has failed to gain Senate approval.
"This bill is about leveling the playing field between labor and management," Patrick said in a statement.
Unlike the Kennedy legislation in Congress, which would affect private-sector workers as well, the state's legislation only applies to public sector, quasi-public agencies, and a handful of private sector employees not subject to the National Labor Relations Act.
As the House and Senate debated the bill earlier this year, several Massachusetts hospitals expressed opposition. As a result, the governor's version included an amendment that excluded nonprofits, such as hospitals.
April Simpson can be reached
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