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Senate clears constitutional labor article revisions, sending SJR 7 to the ballot
Summary
The Senate unanimously passed SJR 7, revising the state constitution’s labor article to remove outdated provisions and clarify public-employee work-hour and blacklisting language; the resolution will proceed toward placement on the ballot.
The Utah Senate voted unanimously to approve Senate Joint Resolution 7, a constitutional amendment that revises the state’s labor article. Senator Hittard walked senators through the proposed changes and explained that the measure primarily modernizes language and removes provisions that are obsolete or conflict with federal law.
Key changes described by Senator Hittard include deleting an unused constitutional mandate to create a Board of Labor Conciliation and Arbitration and replacing mandatory language with permissive language where appropriate; separating provisions about political and commercial control of employees to improve clarity; and removing a state-level minimum‑wage provision for women and minors that is superseded by federal law.
Hittard said the changes were intended to modernize the constitution without affecting private-sector employment law: "We felt it was better constitutional language drafting to make those two sections separate," he said, adding that the amendments do not apply to private employers. Senators asked clarifying questions about historical provisions, use of the never-implemented conciliation board and implications for public employees; Hittard and colleagues said the amendments address constitutional drafting anomalies and would present a cleaner ballot item for voters.
On a roll-call vote, the clerk announced the resolution passed 24–0, with five senators absent. The resolution will be transmitted to the House as constitutionally required and is expected to be placed on the ballot for voter consideration.
Because the change involves the state constitution, the measure’s placement on the ballot and outreach to voters will follow statutory processes for constitutional amendments.
