House Democrat Staff Sues Speaker Chris Welch Over Stalled Union Bill
Brady Burden, a member of the Illinois Legislative Staff Association organizing committee, is pictured with House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch in a committee hearing last October. (Photo: Capitol News Illinois)
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House Democratic staffers hoping to form a union have sued their boss, House Speaker Chris Welch, asking a judge to force recognition of their union.
The Illinois Legislative Staff Association claims Welch is violating the constitution following the passage of the “Workers’ Rights Amendment” in 2022. Staffers argue Welch hasn’t “dealt with his staff in good faith.”
Welch advanced a bill allowing legislative staff during the 2023 Fall Veto session, but the Senate failed to take action on the legislation.
“Speaker Welch says he was “proud” to stand with us back in October—while the cameras were rolling and the people were watching,” the union organizers said in a statement Friday. “Unfortunately, he was also too proud to sit down and work with us once his publicity stunt was over.”
The lawsuit, filed in Cook Count Circuit Court, rests seemingly entirely on the Workers’ Rights Amendment. The addition of to the 1970 constitution created a “fundamental right” for workers to collectively bargain. It prevents state government from enacting a law “that interferes with, negates, or diminishes the right of employees to organize and bargain collectively.”
“The people of Illinois deserve a Speaker of the House who lives by his stated values, deals with others in good faith, and has the morals, courage and integrity to do the right thing,” the union leaders said Friday. “Our experiences over the last year and a half have forced us to question whether, in Speaker Welch, Illinois truly has that.”
In a statement, Welch’s spokesperson, Jaclyn Driscoll, said the Speaker’s office hadn’t been notified of the suit.
“At this time, neither the Speaker nor the Speaker’s office has been served with a lawsuit, but we will thoroughly review once that has happened,” she said.
A preliminary court date has been set for September.