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1 Short Title. This section shall be known as the "Public Employee Choice Act".
2 Statement of Findings. The general court makes the following findings and declares:
I. Public employees and employees and employers should be free to contract on their own terms;
II. Monopoly collective bargaining laws violate this freedom; and
III. It is against New Hampshire public policy to impose monopoly collective bargaining on employees who wish to represent themselves.
3 New Section; Public Employee Choice Act. Amend RSA 273 by inserting after section 11 the following new section:
273-A:11-a Public Employee Independent Bargaining.
I. For the purposes of this section:
(a) "Independent bargaining" shall mean negotiating with a public employer regarding wages, hours, grievance adjustments, or other employment terms without intervention of an employee organization or exclusive bargaining representative;
(1) "Independent bargaining" does not confer greater or lesser rights than employees in units with exclusive representation;
(2) "Independent bargaining" does not impose greater or lesser duties on employers than those owed to employees in units with exclusive representation;
(b) "Employee organization" shall mean any association, organization, or committee advocating for employees concerning wages, labor disputes, hours, or conditions of work;
(c) "Public employee" shall mean any person employed by the state of New Hampshire or a political subdivision, public school, authority, commission, board, or other public service entity;
(d) "Public employer" shall mean any state or local government, agency, instrumentality, school board, or other public entity employing one or more persons;
(e) "Collective bargaining" shall mean the mutual obligation of employer and certified exclusive bargaining representative to negotiate in good faith regarding wages, hours, and employment terms; and
(f) "Exclusive bargaining representative" shall mean any employee organization certified by the public employment labor relations board under RSA 273-A to represent employees in a bargaining unit.
II. For the purposes of this section, the following categories of public employees are exempt from independent bargaining rights:
(a) Law enforcement officers as defined in RSA 106-L:2;
(b) Firefighters;
(1) Firefighters shall include employees that:
(A) Have the authority and responsibility to engage in the prevention, control, or extinguishment of fires, and who perform activities that are required for and directly concerned with the prevention, control, or extinguishment of fires, including incidental non-firefighting functions;
(B) As a job requirement are fully certified as a firefighter by the New Hampshire fire standards and training commission; and
(C) As a job requirement meets all physical, mental, educational, and other qualifications for continuing certification as a firefighter that may be established by the certifying authority;
(2) Firefighters shall not include any persons employed auxiliary, intermittent, special, part-time, volunteer, call, or reserve firefighters;
(c) Emergency medical service personnel as defined in RSA 153-A:2, VI, with the exception of employees or members serving a private organization;
(d) State and county corrections officers that:
(1) Are responsible for the physical custody and security of inmates at a state or county correctional facility;
(2) Are authorized by law to use force to prevent escapes from such facility;
(3) As a job requirement are fully certified as a corrections officer by the New Hampshire police standards and training council; and
(4) As a job requirement meets all the physical, mental, educational, and other qualifications for continuing certification as a corrections officer that may be established by the certifying authority; and
(e) Any other category of employee for which federal law requires exclusive representation to preserve eligibility for federal funding.
III. Independent bargaining rights established under this paragraph shall not apply to exempt employees as defined in paragraph II. Employees in these exempt categories remain subject to exclusive representation under RSA 273-A. Independent bargaining rights established under this paragraph shall include:
(a) The right of employees to bargain independently;
(b) That no agreement between an employee organization and a public employer, nor any policy, may require employees who opt for independent bargaining to be represented by a union;
(c) That no collective bargaining agreement may limit an employee's ability to negotiate or adjust grievances directly;
(d) That only one exclusive bargaining representative may be certified per bargaining unit; and
(e) That no agreement may link wages or conditions of independent employees to unionized employees.
IV. Any agreement, understanding, or practice violating employee rights under this section is unlawful, null, and void. Any strike, picketing, boycott, or other action by an employee organization intended to induce prohibited agreements is illegal.
V. It is unlawful for any person, union, officer, agent, or public employer to threaten, intimidate, or coerce employees or their families to join, affiliate with, or financially support an employee organization.
VI. Violations of this section are a class A misdemeanor, subject to:
(a) A fine of up to $5,000;
(b) Imprisonment up to 6 months; or
(c) A combination of both penalties thereof.
VII. The attorney general shall investigate complaints of violations and prosecute offenders to ensure effective enforcement.
VIII. If any provision of this section or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of this section which can be given effect without the invalid provisions or applications, and to this end the provisions of this section are severable.
4 Application. This section applies to all contracts or extensions entered into after the effective date, but not later than two years from the effective date.
5 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2027.
Text to be added highlighted in green.
1 Short Title. This section shall be known as the "Public Employee Choice Act".
2 Statement of Findings. The general court makes the following findings and declares:
I. Public employees and employees and employers should be free to contract on their own terms;
II. Monopoly collective bargaining laws violate this freedom; and
III. It is against New Hampshire public policy to impose monopoly collective bargaining on employees who wish to represent themselves.
3 New Section; Public Employee Choice Act. Amend RSA 273 by inserting after section 11 the following new section:
273-A:11-a Public Employee Independent Bargaining.
I. For the purposes of this section:
(a) "Independent bargaining" shall mean negotiating with a public employer regarding wages, hours, grievance adjustments, or other employment terms without intervention of an employee organization or exclusive bargaining representative;
(1) "Independent bargaining" does not confer greater or lesser rights than employees in units with exclusive representation;
(2) "Independent bargaining" does not impose greater or lesser duties on employers than those owed to employees in units with exclusive representation;
(b) "Employee organization" shall mean any association, organization, or committee advocating for employees concerning wages, labor disputes, hours, or conditions of work;
(c) "Public employee" shall mean any person employed by the state of New Hampshire or a political subdivision, public school, authority, commission, board, or other public service entity;
(d) "Public employer" shall mean any state or local government, agency, instrumentality, school board, or other public entity employing one or more persons;
(e) "Collective bargaining" shall mean the mutual obligation of employer and certified exclusive bargaining representative to negotiate in good faith regarding wages, hours, and employment terms; and
(f) "Exclusive bargaining representative" shall mean any employee organization certified by the public employment labor relations board under RSA 273-A to represent employees in a bargaining unit.
II. For the purposes of this section, the following categories of public employees are exempt from independent bargaining rights:
(a) Law enforcement officers as defined in RSA 106-L:2;
(b) Firefighters;
(1) Firefighters shall include employees that:
(A) Have the authority and responsibility to engage in the prevention, control, or extinguishment of fires, and who perform activities that are required for and directly concerned with the prevention, control, or extinguishment of fires, including incidental non-firefighting functions;
(B) As a job requirement are fully certified as a firefighter by the New Hampshire fire standards and training commission; and
(C) As a job requirement meets all physical, mental, educational, and other qualifications for continuing certification as a firefighter that may be established by the certifying authority;
(2) Firefighters shall not include any persons employed auxiliary, intermittent, special, part-time, volunteer, call, or reserve firefighters;
(c) Emergency medical service personnel as defined in RSA 153-A:2, VI, with the exception of employees or members serving a private organization;
(d) State and county corrections officers that:
(1) Are responsible for the physical custody and security of inmates at a state or county correctional facility;
(2) Are authorized by law to use force to prevent escapes from such facility;
(3) As a job requirement are fully certified as a corrections officer by the New Hampshire police standards and training council; and
(4) As a job requirement meets all the physical, mental, educational, and other qualifications for continuing certification as a corrections officer that may be established by the certifying authority; and
(e) Any other category of employee for which federal law requires exclusive representation to preserve eligibility for federal funding.
III. Independent bargaining rights established under this paragraph shall not apply to exempt employees as defined in paragraph II. Employees in these exempt categories remain subject to exclusive representation under RSA 273-A. Independent bargaining rights established under this paragraph shall include:
(a) The right of employees to bargain independently;
(b) That no agreement between an employee organization and a public employer, nor any policy, may require employees who opt for independent bargaining to be represented by a union;
(c) That no collective bargaining agreement may limit an employee's ability to negotiate or adjust grievances directly;
(d) That only one exclusive bargaining representative may be certified per bargaining unit; and
(e) That no agreement may link wages or conditions of independent employees to unionized employees.
IV. Any agreement, understanding, or practice violating employee rights under this section is unlawful, null, and void. Any strike, picketing, boycott, or other action by an employee organization intended to induce prohibited agreements is illegal.
V. It is unlawful for any person, union, officer, agent, or public employer to threaten, intimidate, or coerce employees or their families to join, affiliate with, or financially support an employee organization.
VI. Violations of this section are a class A misdemeanor, subject to:
(a) A fine of up to $5,000;
(b) Imprisonment up to 6 months; or
(c) A combination of both penalties thereof.
VII. The attorney general shall investigate complaints of violations and prosecute offenders to ensure effective enforcement.
VIII. If any provision of this section or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of this section which can be given effect without the invalid provisions or applications, and to this end the provisions of this section are severable.
4 Application. This section applies to all contracts or extensions entered into after the effective date, but not later than two years from the effective date.
5 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2027.