A bill that would grant more public employees in Colorado the right to unionize is shaping up to be the next big labor fight at the state Capitol.
The proposal, which will be sponsored by House Majority Leader Daneya Esgar, a Pueblo Democrat, would allow people working for cities, counties, schools, public hospitals and other local government entities the right to collectively bargain.
It would be a major expansion of labor rights for those workers, who can currently form unions but don’t have negotiating power over their work conditions, unless they are recognized by voters or the organization they work for.
“We want to make sure it doesn’t matter where you live, you have the right to bargain,” Esgar said.
Although the measure has not been introduced and many details are still in flux, labor groups say it’s the last major piece in their long effort to expand collective bargaining for workers in Colorado. In 2020, Democratic lawmakers passed a measure allowing the union for nearly 28,000 state workers to collectively bargain. Labor advocates had another win last year when they passed a contentious law granting agricultural workers minimum wage, collective bargaining and other protections.
“This is the unfinished business of making sure all Coloradans have the freedom to join a union,” said Dennis Dougherty, executive director of the Colorado AFL-CIO.
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