# What the Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act Does

This bill would give police officers, firefighters, and emergency medical personnel in state and local governments the right to form unions and negotiate collectively with their employers about pay, hours, and working conditions. Right now, these rights vary dramatically depending on which state you live in—some states allow public safety workers to unionize freely, while others ban it almost entirely. This bill would create a federal floor of minimum rights that applies everywhere.

Here's how it would work in practice: The Federal Labor Relations Authority (an existing government agency) would have 180 days to review each state's laws and decide whether they already provide public safety workers with adequate collective bargaining rights. If a state's laws measure up—meaning they allow workers to form unions, require employers to negotiate in good faith, and provide ways to resolve disputes—then nothing changes and the state keeps its own system. But if a state's laws fall short, federal rules would kick in after a grace period of about two years, giving public safety workers the ability to unionize and bargain collectively under federal oversight.

The bill specifically protects public safety by prohibiting strikes and lockouts that would disrupt emergency services. It also respects states that already have strong protections for public safety workers and doesn't force states to change laws that are already more generous than what the bill requires. Importantly, the bill doesn't override state "right-to-work" laws that prevent unions from requiring membership fees. Small towns with fewer than 25 employees can also be exempted from the requirements.

The practical effect would be most significant in states that currently restrict or prohibit unionization for police, firefighters, and paramedics. Workers in those states would gain the ability to negotiate collectively over compensation and working conditions, while states with existing strong union protections would see little change.

Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act

Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act This bill requires the Federal Labor Relations Authority to determine whether a state substantially provides public safety officers or employees <ul> <li>the right to form and join a labor organization; </li> <li>recognition by public safety employers of the employees' labor organization, agreement to bargain with the organization, and reduction of any agreements to writing in a contract or memorandum of understanding; </li> <li>the right to bargain over hours, wages, and terms and conditions of employment; and </li> <li>binding interest arbitration to resolve an impasse in collective bargaining negotiations. </li></ul> The bill makes the authority responsible for (1) determining the appropriateness of units for labor representation; (2) supervising elections; (3) conducting hearings and resolving complaints of unfair labor practices; and (4) protecting the right of employees to form, join, or assist any labor organization, or to refrain from doing so. An employer, public safety officer, or labor organization may not engage in a lockout, sickout, work slowdown, strike, or any other organized job action that will measurably disrupt the delivery of emergency services and is designed to compel an employer, public safety officer, or labor organization to agree to the terms of a proposed contract.