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Pennsylvania Act 195 (1970)
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On June 17, 1969, House Bill 1316 was introduced by Rep. Harry Comer. The bill in its finalized form unanimously passed the Pennsylvania House of Representatives on December 8, 1969, and unanimously passed the Pennsylvania State Senate on December 16, 1969. Pennsylvania Governor Raymond Shafer signed HB 1316 on January 15, 1970.[1]
Pennsylvania Act 195, the enactment of HB 1316, (short titled the Public Employee Relations Act of 1970) granted teachers and other public employees the right to strike. Act 195 continues to define the framework of public-sector collective bargaining in Pennsylvania. However, Act 88 (1992) changed the process of contract negotiations and the rules governing strikes and their duration.
Act 195 placed almost no restrictions on unions' ability to call strikes. For example, Act 195 permitted teachers to walk off the job without giving school administrators prior notice and allowed unions to target schools selectively within a district. The law set no limits on how long a strike could last.[2]
History of strikes in Pennsylvania
During the next 22 years, Pennsylvania led the nation in the number of school strikes. According to data compiled by the Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PSBA), during this period there were more than 800 strikes involving more than 250,000 school employees and more than 3.7 million students.[3] This number is partly explained by the number of school districts at the start of 2009, which was 501 districts.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Pennsylvania General Assembly, "House Bill 1316; Regular Session 1969-1970," accessed July 12, 2023
- ↑ Act 195, Strikes
- ↑ Pennsylvania School Boards Association, Public School Negotiations; A Complete Guide to Collective Bargaining in Pennsylvania Public Education (PSBA, 1993).
