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Posted by: Inspector

WASHINGTON -- The Senate on Tuesday gave preliminary approval to a bill that would give police officers, firefighters and other first responders the right to unionize but take away their ability to go on strike. The 69-29 procedural vote proved the measure would survive any possible filibuster attempt. The Senate will vote to send the legislation to President Bush later this week. The bill would guarantee public safety officers the right to join unions and bargain over wages, hours and conditions of employment. It also would ban them from going on strike.
Two states, Virginia and North Carolina, prohibit public safety officers from collective bargaining. At least 20 other states don't fully protect collective bargaining rights for firefighters, police officers, corrections officers and emergency medical service workers, supporters said.
States could exempt towns with fewer than 5,000 people or fewer than 25 full time employees.
"Fairness means fire fighters and police officers having a voice at the table in life-and-death discussions about their work," said Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee. "They know best how to do their jobs effectively, efficiently and safely. Everyone benefits when they're given the chance to share that knowledge at the bargaining table."
Republicans called the bill payback for union help in elections.
"While American families are facing an uncertain economy, Democrats are shamefully pushing another job-killing bill to help line the pockets of organized labor," said Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C. "Let's be honest: This bill is a political payoff to big labor bosses, whose political support is needed to keep Democrats in charge of Congress."
Democratic Sens. Barack Obama of Illinois and Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, interrupting their presidential campaigns, voted to begin debate on the bill. Sen. John McCain, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, was not present.
The bill "makes sure those on the front lines, who make snap decisions in saving lives every day, have a voice in protecting themselves and their communities," said Harold A. Schaitberger, president of the International Association of Fire Fighters.

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Posted by: Inspector

Not all Republicans were involved in trying to stop the measure. Police sites across the country report the following Republicans broke from the rest to support first responders: Again some emphasized that Sen. McCain ducked the vote.

he cloture vote on the motion to proceed to debate on H.R. 980, the "Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act," was passed on a lopsided 69-29 vote.

All Senate Democrats, including both Senators Clinton (D-NY) and Obama (D-IL), as well as independent Senators Lieberman (ID-CT) and Sanders (I-VT) voted in favor of the cloture motion, as did the following Republicans (Republican Senators who are cosponsors of the Senate bill, S. 2123, are marked with an asterisk.)

Chambliss (GA) Gregg (NH)* Murkowski (AK)* Sununu (NH)*
Coleman (MN)* Hagel (NE) Smith (OR)* Thune (SD)
Collins (ME)* Hatch (UT) Snowe (ME)* Voinovich (OH)
Domenici (NM)* Martinez (FL)* Specter (PA)*
Grassley (IA) McConnell (KY) Stevens (AK)*

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Posted by: kwflatbed

The Associated Press



WASHINGTON --
Senate Democrats on Thursday dropped a bill allowing all police, firefighters and other first responders to unionize after Republicans complained they didn't get enough time to offer amendments.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he did not have enough votes to force final consideration of the bill.
The two top senators on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee, Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., and Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., will try to work out an agreement before the bill comes back for consideration, Reid said.
The bill would guarantee public safety officers the right to join unions and bargain over wages, hours and conditions of employment. It also would ban them from going on strike.
Two states, Virginia and North Carolina, prohibit public safety officers from collective bargaining. At least 20 other states don't fully protect collective bargaining rights for firefighters, police officers, corrections officers and emergency medical service workers, supporters said.
States could exempt towns with fewer than 5,000 people or fewer than 25 full-time employees.
"I know there are diverse views on this issue," Kennedy said. "We'll try to work out an orderly process and proceed."
___
On the Net:
Bill is HR 980. Text: http://thomas.loc.gov


Wire Service

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Posted by: CJIS

Related

http://www.masscops.com/forums/showthread.php?goto=newpost&t=53817

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Posted by: soup

Many months ago I predicted that Bush would veto this bill and nobody believed it. Read on. This is from the IBPO web site.


Senate Takes First Steps to Let Police Unionize

May 14, 2008

On Tuesday, May 13, the U.S. Senate gave preliminary approval to the Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act, a bill that would guarantee police and other first responders the right to unionize. Twenty-two states currently prohibit or restrict collective bargaining rights among police and other public safety workers.
“The protections in this bill are long overdue for many women and men who risk their own safety to guarantee ours,” said David J. Holway, IBPO national president. “At the very least, they deserve a voice in decisions about how to perform their jobs safely and effectively.”
By a vote of 69-29, senators voted to invoke cloture on S.2123, which means opponents won’t be able to mount a successful filibuster against the bill. The Senate will vote later this week on whether to send the bill to President Bush. A statement from the Bush White House said the president’s advisors will recommend he veto the bill, but if Tuesday’s vote margin holds on the full Senate floor, the bill will have veto-proof majority support. (The House of Representatives voted 314-97 last year to support the measure.)
Two of the three remaining presidential candidates were present for the votes on May 13. Democratic Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York and Barack Obama of Illinois both voted to begin full debate on the bill; Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona was not present.

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Posted by: GD

These guys are all the same screw the unions!!! Unbelievable! I voted republican last election but I am voting for Mickey Mouse this one because they all have made the union enemy number one for votes!!!

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Posted by: Ht2320

The prospects for action on several pieces of legislation dimmed Monday (5-19) as it became apparent that Edward M. Kennedy ’s hospitalization will prevent him from returning before the Memorial Day recess.

Kennedy’s unexpected absence from the Senate has extinguished hopes of passing a bill that would extend collective-bargaining rights to public safety employees (HR 980) and of resolving differences between the House and Senate versions of a major higher education overhaul (HR 4137, S 1642) before the weeklong break that begins May 23.

As chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Kennedy was a hands-on negotiator on those bills and others.

“He’s an important part of closing deals,” said a former Kennedy aide. “So if they weren’t closed, then they might have to wait for his return.”

The 76-year-old Massachusetts Democrat was admitted to a Boston hospital May 17 after having a seizure at his Cape Cod home.

Majority Leader Harry Reid , D-Nev., had hoped that Kennedy and the committee’s ranking Republican, Michael B. Enzi of Wyoming, could agree on a limited number of amendments to the collective-bargaining bill and allow the chamber to pass the measure this week.

But by Monday, with Kennedy still in the hospital, negotiators were looking for more time.

“Staff-level negotiations will continue, but any serious movement will take place after the Memorial Day recess,” said a senior Democratic aide. “Now we have a little more time to iron out the differences ... and reach an agreement.”

Reid suspended action on the bill May 15 after it became apparent that Republican objections would prevent the measure from garnering the 60 votes required to cut off debate.

The bill, which drew fire from Enzi and other Republicans because Reid bypassed the committee process to bring it to the floor, would give state and local public safety officials, including police and firefighters, the right to unionize in any municipality with a population that exceeds 5,000.

It was unclear late Monday exactly when Kennedy would be back to work, but an aide seemed to foreclose the possibility that it would be this week, saying Kennedy would likely remain in the hospital for several days and would then “take a few days off at home before returning to the Senate.”

Doctors are still trying to determine the cause of Kennedy’s seizure, but said May 17 that he was “not in any immediate danger” and that preliminary tests indicated that he had not suffered a stroke.

Jim Manley, a spokesman for Reid, declined to comment Monday on whether Reid and other Senate leaders would defer to Kennedy or delegate responsibilities to other senators until his return.

Reid said Monday that he has spoken several times with Kennedy’s wife, Victoria, and was optimistic that Kennedy’s health would not sideline him for too long.

“Anyone who knows Ted Kennedy and his work ethic realizes that no one is more eager to get back to work than him,” Reid said.

Legislation On Hold

Even before Kennedy’s weekend health troubles, the outlook for a quick deal on the long-term renewal of the Higher Education Act was uncertain, though Kennedy and the lead House negotiator, Rep. George Miller , D-Calif., had hoped to clear a final bill before the Memorial Day recess.

With Kennedy out of the picture, that outlook was downgraded to virtually impossible.

Differences still to be worked out, according to those close to the debate, include textbook costs and new penalties for states that diminish their contributions to higher education.

Negotiations on a Kennedy bill to increase the use of information technology in health care (S 1693) also could languish in the chairman’s absence.

The bill overcame a major hurdle last week, when Kennedy and Enzi, his chief co-sponsor, agreed to accept an amendment by Judiciary Chairman Patrick J. Leahy , D-Vt., that Leahy believes will strengthen privacy protections in the legislation.

The bill would provide grants and loans to health providers to buy the technology to share medical records electronically, and would encourage the health care industry to settle on software and hardware standards for electronic medical records.

However, aides noted that the legislation was not going to be ready for the floor until sometime in June.

A Senate GOP aide said the revised bill, with Leahy’s language, was being circulated among Senate offices this week to determine whether there was any remaining opposition to the measure.

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Posted by: Inspector

And this exactly is why whether you like the Kennedy or not he is needed by us and our colleagues across the nation.

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