From the Illinois Policy Institute:
Government unions already hold tremendous power over taxpayers in Illinois. Three bills heading to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s desk will give them even more power by violating worker privacy, thwarting taxpayer protections and blocking schools in emergencies.
The Illinois General Assembly passed at least three bills this session giving government unions even more power, specifically to violate worker privacy, thwart government efforts to protect taxpayer dollars and hinder schools’ ability to fix worker shortages in emergencies.
Government unions in Illinois already hold more power over workers and taxpayers than their counterparts in any other state. They succeeded in pushing for even more during this past legislative session.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker should veto these bills to protect worker privacy, taxpayers’ pocketbooks and school districts’ ability to function.
House Bill 3309 gives workers’ private information to state government unions without permission
Illinois law already requires school districts to provide their local unions the personal information of all teachers and other education employees represented by those unions. That includes the employee’s name, worksite location, home address, home telephone number, mobile numbers and personal email address.
Currently, that information must be turned over to the local union, even if the employee is not a union member. HB 3309 takes it farther.
If Pritzker signs the bill, that same information must be provided to the union’s state affiliate as well. In other words, a teacher in Peoria already has her information shared with the local Peoria Federation of Teachers Local 780. HB 3309 requires the district to also provide the information to the Illinois Federation of Teachers.
School employees have no ability to opt out of this sharing of their personal information with a third party.
The local union could share that information with the state affiliate itself. But HB 3309 makes the school district do the union’s dirty work of sharing teachers’ personal information with a third party.
Senate Bill 453 makes it harder for government units to protect taxpayers’ money
SB 453 makes a minor change that could have expensive implications.
The Illinois Public Labor Relations Act currently provides a mechanism to speed up contract negotiations the first time a government union negotiates with a government employer by sending negotiations into mediation after just 90 days. It can force an employer to make costly concessions to avoid the union-friendly mediation process.
But it previously only applied to smaller government unions with fewer than 35 employees. There is no time limit for government unions representing more than 35 employees. SB 453 removes that limit, making it applicable to all new government unions in the state, regardless of size.
This means larger, new government unions can make costly demands and force a government employer to concede or go into mediation at a faster pace. That undermines the government employer’s ability to negotiate a contract that is fair to both employees and the taxpayers footing the bill.
Senate Bill 1799 hinders school districts from using contract workers during times of emergency
Illinois’ school code already limits when a school district can use a “third-party non-instructional service” to meet its needs. These are contracted employees who are not part of a labor union.
SB 1799 amends the school code to add further restrictions when the school district is in an “emergency situation.”
For example, if a school district needs to renew or enter a contract with a third party to provide non-instructional services during an “emergency situation” three or more times, it must get the local union’s approval. “Emergency situation” is defined to mean any “sudden and unforeseen event or change in circumstances that would result in near-term interruption of non-instructional services that calls for immediate action.”
In such a situation, a school district is already dealing with an emergency threatening the school day because there are not enough workers to ensure non-instructional work is completed. The bill requires district to then take the time to confer with the local union and obtain permission to get those positions filled by contract workers.
The bill is clearly about preserving union power and jobs – not about what’s best for students.
There’s more labor-friendly legislation coming
Several labor bills did not pass this session but are on the horizon when the session picks back up in January 2026. One bill in particular is worth noting.
House Bill 2973 would allow more government workers – including assistant state’s attorneys and assistant public defenders – to unionize, contrary to taxpayers’ best interests. Employees in those positions are currently not allowed to unionize or go on strike, but HB 2973 would change that.
Technically, the so-called “workers’ rights” amendment in the Illinois Constitution – more commonly known as Amendment 1 – already allows any state or local government employees to unionize. It appears lawmakers are using HB 2973 to make clear that right includes positions that previously were excluded from unionization under the Illinois Public Labor Relations Act before the passage of Amendment 1.
The bill passed the Illinois House. It did not come to a vote in the state Senate, so it won’t yet make its way to Pritzker’s desk.
But it’s still important to note, because it represents the goal of government unions to extend unionization to offices and positions never before bogged down with the conflicts of interest and expensive contracts that are inherent in the unionization of public employees.
