{"id":2318965,"date":"2024-08-04T12:01:59","date_gmt":"2024-08-04T16:01:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/illinois-house-staffer-says-speaker-needs-to-soul-search-after-tying-to-toss-lawsuit-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-08-04T12:07:22","modified_gmt":"2024-08-04T16:07:22","slug":"illinois-house-staffer-says-speaker-needs-to-soul-search-after-tying-to-toss-lawsuit-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/illinois-house-staffer-says-speaker-needs-to-soul-search-after-tying-to-toss-lawsuit-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Illinois House staffer says speaker needs to \u2018soul search\u2019 after tying to toss lawsuit &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">34<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fillinois-house-staffer-says-speaker-needs-to-soul-search-after-tying-to-toss-lawsuit-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2318965&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The ongoing legal situation involves House Speaker Emanuel &#8220;Chris&#8221; Welch of Illinois, whose staff has filed a lawsuit seeking \u2064the right to collectively bargain. The lawsuit arises after Welch&#8217;s team allegedly interfered with their unionizing efforts. The plaintiffs are pushing back against Welch&#8217;s motion\u200b to \u2062dismiss the case, \u200bwhich they \u2063argue \u200bis based on the accusation of\u200c &#8220;forum shopping&#8221;\u2014the practice of filing a legal\u2062 case in\u200c a venue that is \u200cperceived\u2062 to be more\u200d favorable.<\/p>\n<p>Brady \u200cBurden, the lead plaintiff, claims the staff approached the Illinois Labor Relations Board for guidance before deciding to\u2064 sue \u2063Welch,\u2063 who they contend is\u2064 not \u2062exempt from the law, particularly the recently passed Workers&#8217; Rights Amendment that guarantees the right to bargain collectively. The Illinois\u2063 Labor Relations Board determined it did not have jurisdiction in this\u200c matter, \u2062which led the \u2064staff \u200bto bring their case \u2064to the courts.<\/p>\n<p>Burden suggested that \u200cWelch, despite his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/insulting-labor-unions-that-endorsed-biden-now-lashing-out-at-him\/\" title=\"\u201cInsulting\u201d- Labor Unions That Endorsed Biden Now Lashing Out At Him\">pro-labor<\/a> reputation, needs to reflect \u200don his role as a manager\u2062 and his interactions with staff. He emphasized the need for Welch \u200dto reconcile his responsibilities with his previously stated labor-friendly views. Furthermore, Burden noted a pervasive atmosphere of \u200cdiscontent among\u2064 staff about speaking out\u2063 against their employer.<\/p>\n<p>the\u200c outcome of this legal challenge could not \u200conly \u200cimpact the staff&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/5-broken-promises-and-flip-flops-from-joe-bidens-first-month-in-office\/\" title=\"5 Broken Promises And Flip-Flops From Joe Biden\u2019s First Month In Office\">collective bargaining rights<\/a> but also reflect\u2063 on Welch&#8217;s leadership style and the dynamics of employment relations within the Illinois legislative framework.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Illinois House staffer says speaker needs to &lsquo;soul search&rsquo; after tying to toss lawsuit<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1722157\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>(The Center Square) &ndash; Plaintiffs in a lawsuit against House Speaker Emanuel &ldquo;Chris&rdquo; Welch, D-Hillside, are requesting that a judge deny Welch&rsquo;s motion to dismiss a case where Illinois Statehouse staffers are seeking to collectively bargain.<\/p>\n<p>Welch&rsquo;s motion includes an accusation that the legislative staff forum shopped, which is a strategy of filing a case in a particular venue that the filing party, in this case the staff and lead plaintiff Brady Burden, believes will be more favorable to its interests. Burden said that the staff didn&rsquo;t do that.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;They accuse us of forum shopping, which is disingenuous considering the whole reason we went to [Illinois Labor Relations Board] was basically at their advice in an attempt to not have to sue the speaker, which is a bad look for everybody,&rdquo; said Burden. &ldquo;We even said that &lsquo;we don&rsquo;t think ILRB has jurisdiction&rsquo; and ILRB said the same thing that they don&rsquo;t have jurisdiction and that we need to go through the courts.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The Illinois Labor Relations Board, according to Burden, ruled that state statute excludes legislative employees and because of that they can&rsquo;t rule something unconstitutional or if Welch is required to adhere to recently passed Workers&rsquo; Rights Amendment. The amendment, which enshrined in the Illinois Constitution the right of workers to collectively bargain, passed in 2022.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Because they are an administrative agency, all they can really do is look at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mississippi-supreme-court-strikes-down-voter-approved-medical-marijuana-initiative\/\" title=\"Mississippi Supreme Court Strikes Down Voter-Approved Medical Marijuana Initiative\">existing case law<\/a> and their statute. What they [ILRB] can&rsquo;t do is rule something unconstitutional, that&rsquo;s something for the courts to decide,&rdquo; Burden said.<\/p>\n<p>The Illinois Labor Relations Board is the state agency that administers the Illinois Public Labor Relations Act, the primary law governing relations between unions and public employers.<\/p>\n<p>Burden said in a request to the court that Welch is not &ldquo;above the law,&rdquo; especially law set out now in the Illinois Constitution.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;He has been very pro-labor and I agree with him on a vast majority of issues, but unfortunately there&rsquo;s something about becoming a boss or a manager that changes the way your outlook and the way you interact with the people you employ,&rdquo; said Burden. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s something he needs to do some soul searching on and resolve that internal conflict.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>When asked about any reprisal for speaking out, Burden said nothing that would stand up in court.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;But the distaste is very clear,&rdquo; Burden told The Center Square. &ldquo;People feel scandalized that anybody would dare speak out at all.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Republicans suggest Welch is fighting this in court and filed a motion to dismiss because Welch&rsquo;s party, which holds a supermajority in both the House and Senate, won&rsquo;t be able to pass bills and budgets at 2 a.m. because future contracts may prohibit staff from working into the wee hours of the morning.<\/p>\n<p>The plaintiffs aren&rsquo;t looking for money but rather they want Welch to meet and confer about the wages, hours and working conditions of legislative staff.<\/p>\n<p>Welch&rsquo;s motion to dismiss has five parts to it.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The first argument is basically saying that because he is a legislator doing legislative business he is immune from liability in this instance,&rdquo; said Burden.<\/p>\n<p>The plaintiffs said Welch has not even attempted to show why a pay raise, a vacation, or protection against sexual harassment would interfere with the enactment of legislation.<\/p>\n<p>Messages from The Center Square seeking comment from Welch&rsquo;s office were not immediately returned.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In the weeks ahead, Burden expects a hearing about the motion to dismiss. If the motion to dismiss is struck down then the parties could have a court date in September about the substance of the case.<\/p>\n<p>Greg Bishop contributed to this report.<\/p>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1722157\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1722157\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Illinois House staffer suggests speaker should engage in &#8216;soul searching&#8217; after attempting to dismiss lawsuit (The Center Square) \u2013 The plaintiffs in a lawsuit against House Speaker Emanuel \u201cChris\u201d Welch, D-Hillside, are asking a judge to reject Welch\u2019s motion to dismiss their case, which involves Illinois Statehouse staffers seeking the right to collectively bargain. Welch&#8217;s motion claims that the legislative staff engaged in &#8220;forum shopping,&#8221; a tactic where a case is filed in a venue believed to be more favorable. However, lead plaintiff Brady Burden contends that this accusation is misleading. \u201cThey claim we are forum shopping, which is disingenuous since we approached the [Illinois Labor Relations Board] based on their guidance to avoid suing the speaker\u2014a situation that reflects poorly on everyone involved,\u201d Burden stated. He added that they had expressed doubts about the ILRB&#8217;s jurisdiction and were informed by the board that they needed to pursue legal action through the courts instead. According to Burden, the Illinois Labor Relations Board determined that state law excludes legislative employees from its jurisdiction and therefore cannot rule on constitutional matters or whether Welch must comply with the recently enacted Workers\u2019 Rights Amendment\u2014an amendment passed in 2022 affirming workers&#8217; rights to collectively bargain within Illinois\u2019 Constitution. \u201cAs an administrative agency, all they can do is interpret existing laws; they cannot declare something unconstitutional\u2014that authority lies with the courts,\u201d Burden explained. He emphasized in his court request that Welch is not &#8220;above the law,&#8221; particularly regarding constitutional provisions now established in Illinois law. While acknowledging Welch&#8217;s generally pro-labor stance on many issues, Burden noted how managerial roles can alter perspectives and interactions with employees: \u201cThat\u2019s something he needs to reflect upon and reconcile.\u201d When asked about potential repercussions for voicing these concerns, Burden indicated there was nothing actionable legally but acknowledged an evident discomfort among colleagues regarding dissenting opinions: \u201cPeople feel scandalized by anyone daring to speak out.\u201d Republicans argue that Welch\u2019s legal battle stems from concerns over future contracts potentially limiting staff work hours during late-night sessions when his party holds supermajorities in both chambers of legislature\u2014making it difficult for them to pass bills at early hours if such restrictions are imposed. The plaintiffs seek discussions with Welch regarding wages, working conditions, and hours rather than financial compensation. Welch&#8217;s dismissal motion consists of five arguments; one asserts his immunity as a legislator conducting official business during this matter according to Burden. The plaintiffs countered by stating he has not justified how issues like pay raises or harassment protections would hinder legislative processes. Attempts by The Center Square for comments from Welch\u2019s office went unanswered initially. In upcoming weeks, Burden anticipates a hearing concerning the dismissal motion; if it fails, court proceedings could occur as soon as September addressing case specifics<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2318966,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/iStock-928158772-1024x609.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[6413,4585,5894,5654,32076],"class_list":["post-2318965","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner","tag-illinois","tag-lawsuit","tag-politics","tag-speaker","tag-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/iStock-928158772-1024x609.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2318965","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2318965"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2318965\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2318966"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2318965"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2318965"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2318965"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}