Utah lawmakers passed a bill last month that would strip collective bargaining rights from some Utah Transit Authority employees, an action that potentially jeopardizes millions of dollars in future federal grant funding, transit union members say.
The measure, HB243, stands to exclude certain UTA managers and supervisors from the state definition of a public transit employee, effectively removing their right to join or form a labor organization, according to the bill’s text. The agency itself brought the issue forward to Rep. Jon Hawkins, R-Pleasant Grove, who sponsored the bill.
“This is just a direct attack on the employees at UTA,” said Spencer Hogue, secretary treasurer for Teamsters Local 222. Wilkins disagreed with Matthews “read on the law,” asserting that the Urban Mass Transportation Act preserves labor rights of the private companies an agency may buy — and since UTA’s predecessor companies were privately-owned, and their supervisory employees did not unionize, the legislation would not risk UTA’s federal grant funds.
Olson also pointed to two court cases that the Labor Department cited in its letter to the Legislature, both of which affirmed that states have the right to pass laws like HB243 — but that they won’t continue to have the privilege of receiving federal funds if those laws violate the Federal Transit Act.
said in an email. The agency’s Office of Labor-Management Standards is in contact with the state regarding the proposed bill.
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