Illinois House speaker’s staff sues to unionize

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Staff members for the Illinois House speaker on Friday filed a lawsuit demanding the right to negotiate working conditions as a union, something the speaker has said he supports.

The action by members of the Illinois Legislative Staff Association in Cook County Circuit Court seeks confirmation that they have a right to “organize and bargain collectively,” as was guaranteed to all workers by an amendment to the state Constitution in 2022.

It also seeks injunctive relief compelling House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch to take steps to negotiate or for a mediator to step in, and it wants the court to order Welch to communicate by a public post or mail to employees assuring them of their right to unionize. Members said Welch has been recalcitrant since they first sought negotiations in November 2022.

Welch sponsored legislation last fall to allow staff to unionize, but the measure didn’t make it through the Senate and it has received pushback from the association because it wouldn’t take effect until next year.

“Speaker Welch says he was ‘proud’ to stand with us back in October — while the cameras were rolling and the people were watching,” the association, which is made up of about 33 legislative coordinators, policy analysts and communications specialists, said in a statement. “Unfortunately, he was also too proud to sit down and work with us once his publicity stunt was over.”

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