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Rep. Hedrick introduces bill to grant public higher‑education employees right to strike
Summary
Representative Troy Hedrick introduced H.173 to remove a prohibition on strikes by public higher‑education employees, aligning their rights with K‑12 educators; bill was introduced and not debated to a vote.
Rep. Troy Hedrick (Burlington) introduced H.173 on Feb. 18, a bill that would remove a statutory prohibition on strikes by public higher‑education employees and give those employees the same right to strike currently afforded to many other public‑sector workers, including K–12 educators.
Hedrick told the House Committee on General and Housing the bill would amend the State Employees Labor Relations Act to remove the specific restriction that applies to higher education employees and would not change prohibitions on strikes by public‑safety employees such as state police or corrections officers. Hedrick emphasized that the bill does not require employees to strike; it only restores parity in collective‑bargaining rights.
The introduction was brief; no committee vote was taken on H.173 during the Feb. 18 hearing. Hedrick encouraged the committee to consult the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and campus bargaining units for technical questions and said the measure is intended to address wage compression and retention issues affecting public higher‑education staff.
Ending H.173 was introduced to committee for consideration and will be scheduled for further discussion at a subsequent meeting. No action or vote on the bill occurred during the Feb. 18 session.
