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State officials have released the unofficial results of recertification votes held by school district employee unions.
Votes were held statewide this month for 305 unions representing public school teachers, support staff, and custodial workers. According to results released Tuesday by the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission, all but about 20 of the units met the requirement for 51 percent of the eligible members to vote in favor of recertification. Unions that failed to recertify can continue to exist, but are no longer recognized by districts and can’t negotiate wage increases tied to inflation.
The state’s largest teacher’s union, the Wisconsin Education Association Council, says 97 percent of its member units seeking to recertify were successful in doing so. However, almost half of its groups decided to not even hold votes this year.
The annual votes are required under Act 10, Governor Scott Walker’s signature law that drastically change the collective bargaining powers of unions. The results will be sent to each unit, which will have about eight days to file any challenges.
