CIE Joins Gov. DeSantis for Teachers’ Bill of Rights Signing
Package Includes Critical Legislation to Address Public Sector Union Abuses
Miami, May 9, 2023 — Russ Brown, president of the Center for Independent Employees (CIE), today joined Florida Governor Ron DeSantis for the signing of SB 256, a new law to improve oversight and raise standards for public sector union representation. The legislation came as part of a Teachers’ Bill of Rights, with multiple components receiving the Governor’s signature.
CIE had worked since 2019 through its Florida offices to support efforts to craft SB 256. Among the bill’s provisions are:
Greater transparency on the costs and use of member dues, as well as the voluntary nature of membership. It would also require more robust reporting on union finances.
A requirement that a union must revoke a public employee’s membership upon written request, giving the employee the freedom to opt out at any time.
Improvement of union reporting requirements to prove that union membership rolls are accurate.
A requirement that unions prove at least 60% of the employees in the bargaining unit are dues-paying members (up from 50%). Failure to show 60% will trigger an employee vote to either recertify or revoke the union’s representation.
A prohibition on unions having dues and uniform assessments automatically deducted and collected by the employer. Unions, not taxpayers, are now responsible for collecting union dues and cannot simply reach into employees' paychecks.
The legislation addresses the flaws in a 2018 law that required unions to maintain a 50% membership threshold or face a recertification election. The 50% membership requirement was self-reported without basic requirements for proof, and was therefore vulnerable to abuse. The original legislation focused only on Florida teachers. It is now expanded to all of Florida's municipal, county and state employees (excluding police and firefighters), allowing the most basic principle of freedom of association for a broader swath of the public sector.
“This is a very good day in the Sunshine State," said CIE’s Brown. “It’s a good day for parents, for students, for teachers, and for a wide swath of public employees. The Governor’s signature represents a masterstroke for a higher-functioning public sector and a more just Florida.”
Gov. DeSantis said the new law will prevent “politically motivated school boards and special interests” from wielding power over Florida’s teachers.
“For far too long, unions and rogue school boards have pushed around our teachers, misused government funds for political purposes, taken money from teachers’ pockets to steer it for purposes other than representation of teachers, and sheltered their true political goals from the educators they purport to represent,” said Gov. DeSantis.
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The Center for Independent Employees (CIE) is a 501(c)(3) legal defense foundation that provides legal representation and aid to independent employees who are opposed to union oppression in their workplaces.
Contact: Keith Williams, Senior Vice President, (864) 316-9050