[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 82 (Wednesday, June 13, 2001)]
[House]
[Page H3126]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  THE IMPORTANCE OF COLLECTIVE BARGAINING FROM A HIGH TECH PERSPECTIVE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Washington (Mr. Inslee) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. INSLEE. Madam Speaker, I come to the well of the House today to 
speak in favor of and to recognize the importance of collective 
bargaining. I would like to do it from the perspective of my particular 
district. I represent a high tech district in the State of Washington 
just north of Seattle that includes Redmond where Microsoft is located 
as well as many software firms. It includes a biotech corridor where 
some of the new medicines are being developed with our new genetic 
technology, Immunex and others. From that perspective, a lot of folks 
have thought in the new economy where we have high tech jobs and 
software and biotech that the importance of collective bargaining or 
organized labor would fade away. I just want to say today that from the 
perspective of the high tech economy represented by my district, the 
importance of collective bargaining to people remains just as large and 
fundamental as it always has been in this country.
  I want to tell just a couple of stories as to why that is true. First 
the story of Northwest Hospital in my district where a large group of 
employees desired to be represented by the SCIU, the service employees 
union, from a variety of professions at the hospital. Something 
interesting happened when those workers decided they wanted to be 
represented by SCIU. What was interesting that happened is that the 
hospital management, unlike a lot of places, decided not to try to 
intimidate workers, not to try to browbeat workers, not to interfere in 
the decision by the workers who are really the people who ought to have 
the decision whether to be represented or not represented. As a result 
of that, the workers freely voted and indeed in this case voted to be 
represented by that bargaining unit. To date there has been peace and 
harmony and increased productivity at that hospital I think because of 
that peaceful relationship. It was one example about how where 
management took a progressive attitude to allow workers to freely voice 
whether or not to be represented, things worked well.
  Now I want to talk about the current situation at the University of 
Washington where the teachers assistants have expressed a desire to be 
represented by a bargaining unit of the UAW. Despite, I think, their 
clear manifestation of a desire, the administration of the UW has felt 
constrained, they believe they do not have the legal authority under 
the Washington State legislative structure to enter into a bargaining 
unit at the University of Washington. Many people, myself included, 
believe that is a misinterpretation of Washington law.
  Nonetheless, that has created a lot of tension and the lack of the 
ability to move forward between the management, essentially the 
administration of the University of Washington and the teachers 
assistants. It is a situation where collective bargaining has not been 
able to move forward at least due to the perceived belief of the 
University of Washington management that we have not been able to move 
forward in a collective bargaining agreement, much I think to the 
detriment of the institution as a whole.
  I think it has been instructive as to why collective bargaining needs 
to be recognized. We have been hopeful that the administration would 
take another look at the interpretation of Washington law. Failing 
that, we have also been hopeful that the Washington legislature would 
do some house cleaning and simply grant very specifically to the 
University of Washington administration the ability to collectively 
bargain. I am told that our friends in the other party have blocked 
efforts of that in the Washington legislature. I think that is very, 
very shortsighted. To simply give the University of Washington 
management the same authority that other management anywhere in America 
has to enter into collective bargaining units.
  I want to say today from a high tech corridor, there is good news in 
a bargaining situation in a hospital. There is bad news in another high 
tech corridor, the University of Washington. We are hopeful that that 
gets resolved so that the parties can move forward in this very 
important right of collective bargaining to organize. That is the story 
from the high tech world.

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