Florida Senate - 2011 SB 830
By Senator Thrasher
8-00622D-11 2011830__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to labor and employment; amending s.
3 110.114, F.S.; prohibiting a state agency from
4 deducting from employee wages the dues, uniform
5 assessments, fines, penalties, or special assessments
6 of an employee organization or contributions made for
7 purposes of political activity; amending s. 112.171,
8 F.S.; prohibiting a county, municipality, or other
9 local governmental entity from deducting from employee
10 wages the dues, uniform assessments, fines, penalties,
11 or special assessments of an employee organization or
12 contributions made for purposes of political activity;
13 creating s. 447.18, F.S.; requiring that a labor
14 organization refund any dues, uniform assessments,
15 fines, penalties, or special assessments paid by an
16 employee which were used for political contributions
17 or expenditures unless the employee has provided prior
18 authorization; requiring that the labor organization
19 provide notice of such contributions and expenditures;
20 prohibiting a labor organization from requiring an
21 employee to authorize the collection of funds for
22 political contributions and expenditures as a
23 condition of membership in the organization; amending
24 s. 447.303, F.S.; prohibiting a public employer from
25 deducting or collecting from employee wages the dues,
26 uniform assessments, fines, penalties, or special
27 assessments of an employee organization; amending s.
28 447.507, F.S., relating to violation of the strike
29 prohibition; conforming provisions to changes made by
30 the act; providing for severability; providing an
31 effective date.
32
33 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
34
35 Section 1. Subsections (1) and (3) of section 110.114,
36 Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
37 110.114 Employee wage deductions.—
38 (1) The state or any of its departments, bureaus,
39 commissions, and officers are authorized and permitted, with the
40 concurrence of the Department of Financial Services, to make
41 deductions from the salary or wage of any employee or employees
42 in such amount as shall be authorized and requested by such
43 employee or employees and for such purpose as shall be
44 authorized and requested by such employee or employees and shall
45 pay such sums so deducted as directed by such employee or
46 employees. The concurrence of the Department of Financial
47 Services shall not be required for the deduction of a certified
48 bargaining agent’s membership dues deductions pursuant to s.
49 447.303 or any deductions authorized by a collective bargaining
50 agreement.
51 (3) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (1) and
52 (2), deductions may not be made for the deduction of an
53 employee’s membership dues, uniform assessments, fines,
54 penalties, or special assessments of deductions as defined in s.
55 447.203(15) for an employee organization, and deductions may not
56 be made for purposes of political activity, including
57 contributions to a candidate, political party, political
58 committee, committee of continuous existence, electioneering
59 communications organization, or organization exempt from
60 taxation under s. 501(c)(4) or s. 527 of the Internal Revenue
61 Code as defined in s. 447.203(11) shall be authorized or
62 permitted only for an organization that has been certified as
63 the exclusive bargaining agent pursuant to chapter 447 for a
64 unit of state employees in which the employee is included. Such
65 deductions shall be subject to the provisions of s. 447.303.
66 Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 112.171, Florida
67 Statutes, is amended to read:
68 112.171 Employee wage deductions.—
69 (1) The counties, municipalities, and special districts of
70 the state and the departments, agencies, bureaus, commissions,
71 and officers thereof are authorized and permitted in their sole
72 discretion to make deductions from the salary or wage of any
73 employee or employees in such amount as shall be authorized and
74 requested by such employee or employees and for such purpose as
75 shall be authorized and requested by such employee or employees
76 and shall pay such sums so deducted as directed by such employee
77 or employees. However, deductions may not be made for the dues,
78 uniform assessments, fines, penalties, or special assessments of
79 an employee organization, and deductions may not be made for
80 purposes of political activity, including contributions to a
81 candidate, political party, political committee, committee of
82 continuous existence, electioneering communications
83 organization, or organization exempt from taxation under s.
84 501(c)(4) or s. 527 of the Internal Revenue Code.
85 Section 3. Section 447.18, Florida Statutes, is created to
86 read:
87 447.18 Refund of certain employee dues, assessments, fines,
88 or penalties.—
89 (1) Unless an employee has executed a written
90 authorization, the employee is entitled to a pro rata refund of
91 any dues, uniform assessments, fines, penalties, or special
92 assessments paid by the employee and used by the labor
93 organization of which the employee is a member to make
94 contributions or expenditures, as defined in s. 106.011. The
95 written authorization must be executed by the employee
96 separately for each fiscal year of the labor organization and
97 shall be accompanied with a detailed account, provided by the
98 labor organization, of all contributions and expenditures made
99 by the labor organization in the preceding 24 months.
100 (2) The employee may revoke the authorization described in
101 subsection (1) at any time. If an employee revokes the
102 authorization, the pro rata refund of the employee for such
103 fiscal year shall be in the same proportion as the proportion of
104 the fiscal year for which the authorization was not in effect.
105 (3) A labor organization may not require an employee to
106 provide the authorization described in subsection (1) as a
107 condition of membership in the labor organization.
108 Section 4. Section 447.303, Florida Statutes, is amended to
109 read:
110 447.303 Dues; Deduction and collection of dues or uniform
111 assessments prohibited.—A public employer may not deduct or
112 collect the dues, uniform assessments, fines, penalties, or
113 special assessments of an employee organization from the
114 compensation of any person employed by the public employer. Any
115 employee organization which has been certified as a bargaining
116 agent shall have the right to have its dues and uniform
117 assessments deducted and collected by the employer from the
118 salaries of those employees who authorize the deduction of said
119 dues and uniform assessments. However, such authorization is
120 revocable at the employee’s request upon 30 days’ written notice
121 to the employer and employee organization. Said deductions shall
122 commence upon the bargaining agent’s written request to the
123 employer. Reasonable costs to the employer of said deductions
124 shall be a proper subject of collective bargaining. Such right
125 to deduction, unless revoked pursuant to s. 447.507, shall be in
126 force for so long as the employee organization remains the
127 certified bargaining agent for the employees in the unit. The
128 public employer is expressly prohibited from any involvement in
129 the collection of fines, penalties, or special assessments.
130 Section 5. Subsection (4) and paragraph (a) of subsection
131 (6) of section 447.507, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
132 447.507 Violation of strike prohibition; penalties.—
133 (4) An employee organization shall be liable for any
134 damages which might be suffered by a public employer as a result
135 of a violation of the provisions of s. 447.505 by the employee
136 organization or its representatives, officers, or agents. The
137 circuit court having jurisdiction over such actions is empowered
138 to enforce judgments against employee organizations, as defined
139 in this part, by attachment or garnishment of union initiation
140 fees or dues which are to be deducted or checked off by public
141 employers. No action shall be maintained pursuant to this
142 subsection until all proceedings which were pending before the
143 commission at the time of the strike or which were initiated
144 within 30 days of the strike have been finally adjudicated or
145 otherwise disposed of. In determining the amount of damages, if
146 any, to be awarded to the public employer, the trier of fact
147 shall take into consideration any action or inaction by the
148 public employer or its agents that provoked or tended to provoke
149 the strike by the public employees. The trier of fact shall also
150 take into consideration any damages that might have been
151 recovered by the public employer under subparagraph (6)(a)4.
152 (6)(a) If the commission determines that an employee
153 organization has violated s. 447.505, it may:
154 1. Issue cease and desist orders as necessary to ensure
155 compliance with its order.
156 2. Suspend or revoke the certification of the employee
157 organization as the bargaining agent of such employee unit.
158 3. Revoke the right of dues deduction and collection
159 previously granted to said employee organization pursuant to s.
160 447.303.
161 3.4. Fine the organization up to $20,000 for each calendar
162 day of such violation or determine the approximate cost to the
163 public due to each calendar day of the strike and fine the
164 organization an amount equal to such cost, notwithstanding the
165 fact that the fine may exceed $20,000 for each such calendar
166 day. The fines so collected shall immediately accrue to the
167 public employer and shall be used by him or her to replace those
168 services denied the public as a result of the strike. In
169 determining the amount of damages, if any, to be awarded to the
170 public employer, the commission shall take into consideration
171 any action or inaction by the public employer or its agents that
172 provoked, or tended to provoke, the strike by the public
173 employees.
174 Section 6. If any provision of this act or its application
175 to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity
176 does not affect other provisions or applications of this act
177 which can be given effect without the invalid provision or
178 application, and to this end the provisions of this act are
179 severable.
180 Section 7. This act shall take effect July 1, 2011.