1. The Fight Against Outsourcing
Jon Haines and Mark Murphy AFSCME Research and Collective Bargaining

2. Today’s Agenda Introductions What is outsourcing?
AFSCME outsourcing fights
How to identify outsourcing threats
Introduce ourselves and panel
Ask attendees:
Who is in the room? What kind of jobs do you do? [Track jobs / sectors on flip chart]
Show of hands: have you or has your local experienced a outsourcing threat? Do you think you might in the future?
What is outsourcing? Contracting out = outsourcing ; includes subcontracted jobs at private employer like a hospital. Where is it happening? Every sector of public service and infrastructure.
How is it a threat? Costs jobs, lowers wages and benefits. Also a threat to your union, even if it’s not your job:
Reduces union power – lower membership, harder to bargain with threat over your heads
Weakens political clout – instead of union members, there’s now a corporation with the relationship
Encourages others – employers copy each other, companies look to expand
At the same time, a good fight against outsourcing sends an important message.
AFSCME affiliate panel and Q&A

3. Stages of Outsourcing Stage Situation Work is performed in-house 1
Work is performed in-house 1
Threats and warning signs 2
Statements or proposals made in favor of outsourcing 3
Requests for Proposals (RFPs) issued 4
Company bids submitted 5
Work is contracted out
The first step in fighting outsourcing is to determine the stage of the threat. Once you know the stage, you can decide the appropriate response.

4. Early Warning Signs Financial Problems Lack of Investment
Outdated Technology and Equipment
Service Problems
Complaints
Cutbacks in Maintenance
Poor Labor Relations
Unfilled Positions
Contractor Presentations
New Services Without New Positions
Operations Studies
What are some of those Stage 1 warning signs? Here are a few. What have you seen?

5. Outsourcing Stages and Actions
If You Have ...
... Then You Need To Do
Work is in-house
Shape the rules: legislative and CBA protections 1
Warning signs
Fix problems, begin campaign 2
Statements / proposals
Critique proposals, develop alternatives 3
Request for Proposals
Evaluate RFP, attend bidders’ conference, research companies, engage allies 4
Bids submitted
Critique RFP and bids, present alternatives 5
Work is contracted out
Pursue legal rights, assist employees, develop insourcing plan, organize contractor employees
Stage 0 - Shape the rules: Legislative protections (verified cost savings, labor standards, bad actors, public hearings, votes); CBA protections (advance notice, reassignment, first refusal)
Stage 1 - Address weaknesses, begin campaign: Fix problems that employees can control; evaluate in-house competitiveness; bring together affected members to begin campaign
Stage 2 - Critique proposals to contract out, develop alternatives: Show harm to the public; develop in-house alternatives to address reasons for contracting (cost, quality)
Stage 3 - Engage allies, reveal company problems: Evaluate the RFP Statement of Work – what’s missing? Attend bidders’ conference to identify and research companies (IU help)
Stage 4 - Critique RFP and bids, present alternatives: reveal what’s missing from Statement of Work; publicize bidding companies’ problems; present alternatives: work redesign, labor-management initiative, CBA concessions; press decision-makers – lean on political support; if losing, buy time, postpone a decision
Stage 5 - Pursue legal rights, assist affected employees, insourcing, organizing: file grievances, lawsuits, ULPs to undo decision; assist affected employees (find other public jobs, first refusal, wage and benefit protections, union protections); watchdog contracted service for problems; follow the work, organize contractor employees

6. The Fight Against Outsourcing: What’s the Stage Where You Work?
You Worksite: ______________________________________________________________
Job or Service: _____________________________________________________________
Stage of Outsourcing (0 - 5): ________
Stages: 0 = In-house 1 = Warning signs 2 = Statements or proposals in favor
3 = RFPs issued 4 = Bids submitted 5 = Work outsourced
Your reasons for Stage Assessment: _______________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
Actions you should take: ___________________________________________________
Now you’re going to assess the outsourcing threat where you work (handout):
List your workplace and the job you do.
Assess the stage of outsourcing your job is in – there’s a key to the stages right there on the handout.
List the reasons you assigned that stage. For example, if Stage 1: what are the specific warning signs you thought of? If Stage 2, who made the statements and what did they say?
Write down the actions you should take to stop outsourcing before it gets to the next level. Get specific.
We have ___ minutes for this part of the workshop. You will want to fill this out in the first ____ minutes, then spend the _____ minutes after that discussing your answers with other AFSCME members at your tables. Make sure you have enough time for each person to briefly explain their assessment. After that, we’ll come back together in the large group to hear from a few of you about what you found.