THE TAYLOR LAW: A LEGISLATIVE HISTORY (NEW YORK)

This study takes an intimate look at a specific piece of legislation, the New York State Public Employees Fair Practices Act, (commonly known as the Taylor Law) and analyzes both the open and behind the scenes activities that have affected the law.;One thrust of the research focuses on the differences in public and private sector labor relations. A second thrust of the research focuses on the passage of the law itself and subsequent amendments to it. A third centers on the identification of those who influenced the original framing of the law and the changes in the law that took place from 1967 to the present. A fourth intent of the research concentrates on an analysis of the effectiveness of individuals and groups as they sought to bring pressure to bear on legislators to mold the Taylor Law to their advantage. By studying strategies regarding effective and ineffective means to influence legislation, the analysis should provide a useful lesson to those who seek to persuade lawmakers to enact, change or oppose legislation.;The methodology of the study includes a formal document analysis of published papers regarding the Taylor Law. These include the Taylor Law and its amendments, committee reports, legislative testimony, and conference proceedings. To illuminate the formal document analysis, the study reports and analyzes data from interviews with key participants. The persons selected for interviews are--or have been--most active in shaping the Taylor Law during the course of its history; persons such as public union leaders, mediator/arbitrators, and labor relations experts. In addition, the study incorporates an intensive review of the literature regarding the Taylor Law in particular and public sector labor relations in general.;The paper identifies the forces that caused changes in the law. Among such forces were political rivalries between City and State politicians, changing economic conditions, conflicts between City and State politicians, changing economic conditions, conflicts between City and State labor relations practices, and overt and covert efforts on the parts of special interest groups to mold the law to their advantage. . . . (Author's abstract exceeds stipulated maximum length. Discontinued here with permission of school.) UMI.;The Taylor Law provides enabling legislation for collective bargaining between public employees and public employers. As such the Taylor Law has a direct impact on the daily working conditions of hundreds of thousands of public employees, teachers included, in New York State.