https://www.austinchronicle.com/daily/news/2007-05-24/478292/

AFSCME Says Bargaining Will Be Back

By Wells Dunbar, May 24, 2007, 4:35pm, Newsdesk

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 1624 has sent out a press release regarding the ugly, unceremonious end-of-legislation promising meet-and-confer bargaining for Austin employees. As we report this week, House Bill 2184, which would allow AFSCME to represent the city's non-public-safety workers in meet-and-confer bargaining, seemed destined for passage in the Senate until Sen. Florence Shapiro, R-Plano, intervened. Citing vague concerns that M&C was being overimplemented throughout the state, she objected to Senate sponsor Sen. Kirk Watson's motion to bring the bill up for a vote. The two-thirds vote narrowly failed by 18 to 10, preventing senators from voting on it.

"Despite deep division in both houses of the Legislature, this legislation passed both houses at least once," reads the releases from 1624's Executive Director Greg Powell. "However, it appears we were ambushed by partisan politics at the end of a bitter session." True that.

AFSCME says they'll renew the push for meet and confer, "starting right now." Click here for the press release.