May 02--A supervisor at the Illinois Department of Revenue made a mistake last fall. She decided to help out with a backlog of tax returns in her department.
For that, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees filed a grievance. The union claimed the supervisor violated a clause in AFSCME's contract by doing "bargaining unit" work. The case went to a mediator. The union demanded overtime pay for the employees whose work the supervisor performed. Both sides settled instead on comp time for the workers. The supervisor got verbally reprimanded by the union.
Welcome to Illinois, where trying to be productive gets penalized.
When Gov. Bruce Rauner talks about the grip public employee unions hold over state government, this is an example of what he means. The demands in AFSCME's 196-page contract often controvert the interests of taxpayers. From overtime costs to seniority rules to the endless grievance process, public employee unions can be an enormous drain on state resources. Unions resist progress, efficiency, modernization -- anything that threatens a union job.
That's one reason why Rauner kicked off his first month as governor with a clenched fist toward organized labor. It can be tough to streamline state government alongside obstructionists.
Another example of AFSCME's tentacles: The union actually filed grievances over the use of volunteers at state-run facilities, including veterans homes and tourist centers. The volunteers were answering phones and helping out. Why the resistance? Those pesky volunteers threatened the security of union jobs.
AFSCME is fighting legislation that's targeted at illegal patronage hiring -- the kind detailed in a 2014 inspector general's report at the Illinois Department of Transportation. Under former Gov. Pat Quinn, IDOT ignored hiring rules for hundreds of clouted employees, according to the report. That deprived qualified applicants of an honest chance to compete for jobs.
Many of the questionable hires eventually got swept into unionized positions through a simple change in job titles. The union doesn't want the state to transfer those workers back into nonunion roles. It's amazing those workers have jobs at all, given how they got hired.
Protect, protect, protect the status quo.
So, yes, Rauner came out swinging.
He issued an executive order in February to eliminate so-called "fair share" fees that nonunion members are forced to pay. Some state workers are union-eligible but decline to join. Those workers get charged a fee similar to union dues. Rauner tried to block unions from being able to take that money, but a judge last month ruled against him. The fees will continue to be collected while the case moves through the courts.
Rauner also supports local right-to-work zones, where workers would not be compelled to join a union or pay dues. The idea is to attract employers to economically depressed areas.
Organized labor has been mobilizing against Rauner's plans, asserting that the governor has "declared war" on labor. Mayor Rahm Emanuel and members of the City Council have spoken out against Rauner's right-to-work zones.
Rauner is taking a stance toward labor the likes of which this state hasn't seen. It's a gamble in a state with a Democrat-controlled House and Senate and a Republican minority that's often cozy with organized labor, too. Rauner's chances of getting much of this through the legislature may be slim.
But the most critical challenge Rauner faces is to forcefully design the most efficient, effective state government he can so that dollars go to essential services. That they don't get wasted.
So what of all the union demands that cost time and money?
What of all the resources wasted on grievances and overtime disputes that could be going to health care or child care or public safety?
Rauner will have a significant say in negotiations on the AFSCME contract, which expires this year. This state can't afford a status quo in which a supervisor can't pitch in on a problem. It can't afford to tell well-intentioned volunteers to go away. It can't afford to waste one dollar on outdated work rules. Not when it faces a $100 billion pension liability. Not when scores of people fear the impact of state spending cuts on services.
Illinois has to work. If Rauner can force that change -- yes, we're looking at you, Springfield -- he will have succeeded.
