UNIONS CAN GET ACCESS TO DATA

Gov. Mel Carnahan's administration has agreed to provide labor unions the home addresses of some 22,000 state workers.

Unions represent those workers through collective bargaining units even though more than 80 percent of them aren't union members and don't pay union dues.

Less than 3,500 of the 22,000 workers covered by bargaining units pay union dues.

Some Republican lawmakers say the decision to provide unions with home addresses threatens employees' right to privacy and opens the door to efforts to further unionize state government.

"I am very concerned about it," said state Sen. Peter Kinder, R- Cape Girardeau.

"I think it is horrible," said state Rep. David Schwab, R-Jackson. "It sounds like he is trying to encourage the unions to organize state workers.".

Carnahan's administration made the change at the request of labor unions representing the 22,363 workers who are covered by bargaining units.

State Sen. Larry Rohrbach, a California, Mo., Republican, said Carnahan put the wishes of union leaders above state employees' right to privacy.

Rohrbach's Senate district includes Missouri's capital, Jefferson City, where many of the state workers live.

He said some workers have complained to him about the policy. Carnahan's Office of Administration also has received complaints from state workers over the new policy.

Rohrbach said he may introduce legislation to bar the state from releasing home addresses without workers' consent.

Carnahan spokesman Chris Sifford said Friday that the new policy came from Richard Hanson, commissioner of administration.

"It is Dick's decision," said Sifford, Carnahan's communications director. "We were aware certainly of the policy and agreed with it."

The GOP lawmakers, however, said the governor's office is behind the new policy. As commissioner of administration, Hanson works for the governor, Rohrbach said.

John Boehm, deputy commissioner of administration, said the state manual used to include the home addresses of state employees. "This is not like this is a major change," he said.

Boehm said the labor unions simply want to communicate with the state workers they represent.

Most of those workers, however, aren't union members. "They are getting represented whether they like it or not," said Boehm.

There are about 55,000 workers in state government. Less than half of them are represented by labor unions.

The major bargaining units are in the mental health, corrections and social services departments, and the Division of Employment Security.

There are smaller bargaining units in other areas of state government, including veterans homes and the departments of elementary and secondary education, and transportation.

"The vast majority of state employees are not in unions," said Rohrbach. "They have voted with their pocketbook generally not to be unionized."

Since Sept. 1, 1994, the state has provided labor unions with quarterly reports listing the names of state employees represented by bargaining units, their job classifications, departments, and, depending on employees' preferences, home or business addresses.

But under the new policy, which took effect Jan. 1, the state will provide the unions with the home addresses of all the workers represented by the bargaining units, regardless of employees' preferences.

State workers learned of the new policy in a Dec. 23 memo from Hanson.

"These lists are confidential and are only for the use of unions conducting business with state employees," he wrote.

Hanson said no other organizations would be given access to home addresses of employees who object to the disclosure of such information.

"They are doing it for the unions and no one else," said Rohrbach.

He contended the Carnahan administration made the policy change to curry favor with union leaders.

Carnahan had strong support from labor unions in winning re-election last November.

The governor wants a state law that would allow collective bargaining for public employees.

Past legislative efforts to allow collective bargaining failed because of strong opposition from the Missouri Senate and business groups.

But in his first term as governor, Carnahan signed an executive order that allows some collective bargaining for state workers.

Kinder said a collective bargaining bill could come up again this legislative session. He said the decision to provide unions with employees' home addresses appears to be another attempt by the governor to push collective bargaining by executive order.

Rohrbach said, "What unions always push for is mandatory union fees, and we don't have that, of course."

The GOP lawmakers said labor union representatives have the right to come into state offices and meet with state employees during regular business hours. They said there is no need for union organizers to have employees' home addresses.

"I honest to God don't want them siccing union organizers on them in their homes," said Rohrbach.

State employees do not have the right to strike, although they are represented by bargaining units. They are covered under "meet and confer" policies.