From Senator Amanda Ragan –
The last couple weeks at the Statehouse, we’ve been focused on standing up to an attack on hard-working Iowans. I’m standing up because I believe law enforcement officers, fire fighters, teachers, nurses and other Iowa workers deserve fairness and a voice in their own workplace.
Out-of-state special interests are pushing a legislative agenda that will drive down wages, cut health care and degrade the quality of life for Iowa workers across the state (SF213 / HF291). There are many aspects to this legislation—which guts Iowa’s collective bargaining laws—that will dramatically impact the livelihoods and families of 180,000 Iowans.
These bills are being rushed through the legislative process, in spite of an overwhelmingly negative response from Iowans of all walks of life. Most Iowans are opposed to stripping rights and protections for public workers. They know how hard firefighters, nurses, road workers, correctional offices, teachers and others work to improve our communities.
One of the most dangerous provisions of their anti-worker legislation reduces the health care security for most Iowans who answer the call to serve our communities. That’s wrong. Rather than fast-tracking a major change in the health care policies of hundreds of thousands of Iowans, we should listen to locally elected officials, managers and others.
The bottom line is the current law works. Originally passed to stop strikes, Iowa’s bipartisan collective bargaining law has served Iowans, employees and public employers well for more than 40 years. It allows management and workers to sit down and negotiate the terms of health insurance, wages and other benefits.
Gutting this law will make it harder—not easier—to attract and retain the top-notch public servants every Iowa community wants.
Predictive programming, they will all be obsolete soon, robots will take all jobs.
Amanda is spewing a nationwide liberal rhetoric that is damaging to this country and the people within it. She and all of the other liberal traitors must go. Please vote for whoever runs against them. It is simple folks, their kind have ruled this land for the last 8 years and look at the mess. Bush didn’t leave them with a quarter of the mess the last administration left. Vote common sense.
I don’t get all the comments about Obama and the Democrats creating a mess:
http://www.factcheck.org/2016/07/obamas-numbers-july-2016-update/
Read some real facts, rather than the alternative facts being Trumpeted these days.
#BowlingGreenMassacreSurvivors stand with #SwedenLastNight
Yes, it IS odd that she mentions, “Rather than fast-tracking a major change in the health care policies of hundreds of thousands of Iowans…” – What about the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that fast-tracked even BIGGER change for a couple hundred MILLION Americans? At least someone READ this bill before they passed it.
Maybe it will put public service employees on a slightly closer playing field to the rest of us that have employer-sponsored health benefits. They might have to endure some of the incredible spikes in deductibles and copays like we do… because of the ACA.
Also, if it allows school districts and various municipal departments to reprimand/remove/not reward sub-par employees (instead of practically making it impossible to fire that horrible teacher or do-the-absolute-minimum state employee that we all know)… I’m all for it. Don’t the teachers, plow drivers, officers and other people who strive to do their best benefit from a merit-based system too?
The best number I can find is that 15.4% of jobs in Iowa are government jobs (http://www.iowadatacenter.org). Given that number, 85% of working Iowans potentially benefit from this legislation.
Yes, it IS odd that she mentions, “Rather than fast-tracking a major change in the health care policies of hundreds of thousands of Iowans…” – What about the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that fast-tracked even BIGGER change for a couple hundred MILLION Americans? At least someone READ this bill before they passed it.
Maybe it will put public service employees on a slightly closer playing field to the rest of us that have employer-sponsored health benefits. They might have to endure some of the incredible spikes in deductibles and copays like we do… because of the ACA.
Also, if it allows school districts and various municipal departments to reprimand/remove/not reward sub-par employees (instead of practically making it impossible to fire that horrible teacher or do-the-absolute-minimum state employee that we all know)… I’m all for it. Don’t the teachers, plow drivers, officers and other people who strive to do their best benefit from a merit-based system too?
The best number I can find is that 15.4% of jobs in Iowa are government jobs (http://www.iowadatacenter.org). Given that number, 85% of working Iowans potentially benefit from this legislation.
Amanda and Sharon have been funded by the unions for years. They have never worried about the private sector citizens who are paying the bill for the public sector employees.
Odd she mentions; ” Rather than fast-tracking a major change in the health care policies of hundreds of thousands of Iowans we should listen to locally elected officials, managers and others.”
I have talked to some locally elected officials and most of them are happy about this new law. While Ragan may infer differently, this bill does not eliminate collective bargaining. But it does make some changes. In my opinion, some of which were long overdue.
What Sen. Ragan also fails to mention anything about is….The bill states that health insurance must be offered to all employees.
It’s a relief this got fixed finally. Thanks for nothing regan.
She didn’t mind a bit when Obama screwed us over on our insurance, of course we were not paying her off like the public unions do.
That’s right. Amanda even hosted a press conference the day after the Supreme Court ruled Obama-care legal, back in 2012. This old hag has no clue about the real world. That’s just one more reason why she has to go. Piss off, you commie beotch.
Please don;t stand up for the hard working private sector that pays for the health insurance for the pubic employees. Your bought and paid for by the public servants union which could give a sht about the little guy your corrupt rules have put in the toilet. FAKE NEWS !