Legislative staff have waited around four months to learn whether Senate President Karen Spilka would recognize their unionization effort with IBEW Local 2222, and on Thursday Spilka seemed to shut the door on that possibility — with an invitation for staff to attend a briefing from Senate lawyers on Friday.
Senators were cloistered in a lengthy private caucus Thursday afternoon in the Senate Reading Room, and state Sen. Michael Moore posted a photo on Twitter of himself, state Sen. John Keenan and state Sen. Sonia Chang-Diaz — supporters of the union push — in the Reading Room wearing State House Employee Union / Local 2222 lapel pins.
"Employees deserve to have a voice at their workplace, and we will keep fighting until every worker has that opportunity - including right here in the State House," Moore wrote alongside the photo.
Spilka addressed senators and staff in a 5:34 p.m. email, declaring "the Senate does not at this time see a path forward" for legislative staff unionization following "an exhaustive review" on "this complex legal area."
"With the information [Counsel] have provided to Senators today, the Senate does not at this time see a path forward for a traditional employer-union relationship in the Senate as we are currently structured," Spilka wrote in the email, which was obtained by the News Service.
Spilka added in her email, "I remain committed to making the Senate a great place to serve the people of the Commonwealth while building a career. We will...
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