AFSCME president says union will push on with collective bargaining lawsuit

BY PCC STAFF

DES MOINES – AFSCME Council 61 President Danny Homan issued the following statement following Judge Arthur Gamble’s ruling on the lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of HF291 that was in front of the 5th Judicial District court in southcentral Iowa.

“Today we were notified that our request for summary judgment was overruled by Chief District Judge Gamble of the Fifth Judicial District of Iowa.

“Chief Judge Gamble agreed that ‘AFSCME proved disparate treatment of similarly situated individuals under H.F. 291. Some unionized public employees are granted privileges and immunities in the form of collective bargaining rights that are not equally granted to all unionized public employees.’ He did not feel that we fully disproved the excuses given by the State for this unequal treatment by lawmakers.

“While we are disappointed that this initial ruling in our fight for collective bargaining justice was not in our favor, we knew from the day we filed this lawsuit, right after HF291 was signed, that this case would likely end up in the Iowa Supreme Court. We are exploring the next step in the legal process, including an appeal. As proven by last week’s recertification victories, we’re not going anywhere. We’re in this for the long haul and look forward to the day that this unconstitutional law is overturned for Iowa’s public employees.”