Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act

Key Points

• The bill would guarantee police officers, firefighters, and emergency medical workers the right to form unions and collectively bargain over pay, hours, and working conditions in every state.
• If a state does not already have laws meeting the bill's minimum standards, the Federal Labor Relations Authority would step in to create and enforce collective bargaining rules for public safety workers in that state.
• States that already provide comparable or greater collective bargaining rights would not be affected. The bill explicitly says it will not override stronger state laws.
• To protect public safety, all strikes, sickouts, work slowdowns, and lockouts by public safety workers or employers are prohibited under this bill.
• Small communities with fewer than 5,000 residents or agencies with fewer than 25 full-time employees are exempt from the federal requirements.
• The bill includes binding arbitration as a way to resolve contract disputes when bargaining reaches an impasse, ensuring workers and employers have a path forward without work stoppages.