THE REFERENDUM AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO BARGAINING

I. B. HELBURN AND J. L. MATTHEWS

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DOI: 10.2190/2FY3-5WTP-9G7J-HDBT

Abstract

Texas cities that have opted for home rule have generally included initiative and referendum provisions in their charters. Fire-fighter and police employee organizations have used these provisions to attempt to gain local implementation of state civil service law, improved pay provisions and shorter hours. Between 1947 and 1974, fifty-one such elections were held in twenty-three cities. Employees won between 66.7 and 80 percent of elections involving civil service, hours or pay, so long as pay parity was not an issue. Employees lost 56.6 percent of the elections where police/fire-fighter pay parity was an issue. Referenda such as those above have not generally been used since 1974, about the time collective bargaining for police and fire-fighters become legal in Texas. However, the spread of bargaining has been limited by a "local option" provision in the law. One 1978 pay election won by police and one 1979 election which resulted in increased police and fire-fighter salaries suggest possible continued use of the referendum process as an alternative to collective bargaining.

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