by CWA Local 3170
Public employees at the City of Gainesville, Gainesville Regional Utilities, Gainesville Housing Authority and the Alachua County Library District represented by CWA Local 3170 have until Nov. 1 to reach 60 percent union membership, or they could lose their union representation.
That deadline is the local consequence of major changes the State of Florida has made to public-sector labor law.
In 2023, Florida passed Senate Bill 256, changing the rules for public-sector unions. Among other things, the law requires many public-sector unions to maintain at least 60 percent dues-paying membership within the employees they represent. Unions that fall below that threshold are required to go through a recertification process.
The law also changed how public employees pay union dues, ending payroll deduction for many public-sector unions and requiring employees to take additional steps to authorize membership and dues payments.
Three years later, Senate Bill 1296 has added another hurdle. The law, which took effect July 1, changes the rules for union certification and recertification elections. This change requires at least 50 percent of the bargaining unit must cast a vote in the recertification election.
For Gainesville and Alachua County Library workers represented by Communications Workers of America Local 3170, these changes have turned membership into a matter of survival.
If their bargaining units do not reach 60 percent membership by Nov. 1, the union could face recertification and potentially lose its status as the employees’ bargaining representative.
That could affect more than union membership.
Collective bargaining agreements establish rules for wages, overtime, leave, working conditions, grievances and disciplinary procedures. A union gives employees a collective voice when negotiating those issues with their employer.
Without a certified bargaining representative, workers could lose that collective voice and have to deal with workplace issues individually rather than through a union.
For employees at Gainesville’s City government, GRU, Gainesville Housing Authority, and the Alachua County Library District, the issue is therefore bigger than whether someone carries a union card. It is about whether they will continue to have a seat at the table.
Other local Public Sector Unions affected by this legislation are United Faculty of Florida-UF, Graduate Assistants Union (GAU), Alachua County Educators Association (ACEA), Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU), each having a different recertification date.
Florida lawmakers have changed the rules. Now Gainesville’s public workers have until Nov. 1 to meet them.
Sixty percent is no longer just a membership goal. It could determine whether these workers still have a union.
If you are a City, GRU, GHA or ACLD employee and would like to join, scan the QR code below or call CWA Organizer Jenn Powell at 352-215-2243