It’s hardly news by now that the unionization of Colorado’s 33,000-plus government employees will strap state lawmakers over a budget barrel – and taxpayers along with them.

Collective bargaining, signed into law by Gov. Jared Polis two years ago, will lock the state into labor contracts with mandated pay raises whether or not there’s enough revenue to cover the tab. And one-size-fits-all collective bargaining not only raises pay and benefits for the many hard-working state employees who may deserve it but also for those who don’t.

It now turns out, there’s another downside: Unionization will grow the state bureaucracy. It will gin up more make-work positions staffed by professional pencil pushers. Taxpayers will pick up the tab for that, too – at a cost of over $2 million.

It’s all in the fine print of the labor contract.

As The Gazette reported this week, the state is now hiring to fill newly created positions that will support “diversity, equity and inclusion” initiatives – a key provision of the collective-bargaining agreement with Colorado WINS, the state employees’ union. The provision requires the establishment of a new statewide Equity Office to be fully staffed with employees of its own and assisted by new positions at other state agencies. The employees will “support and hold accountable the equity, diversity and inclusion initiatives of the state and state entities.”

Of course, the governor simply could have issued an executive order to diversify the state government’s workforce, assuming it was needed. That wouldn’t have cost a penny.

But like any union, Colorado WINS doesn’t really give a fig about diversity or equity or inclusion; it just wants to create more dues-paying members. On the public’s dime.

Why did our lawmakers and governor agree to this? Because organized labor wields a lot of clout in the Democratic Party, which holds commanding majorities in both chambers of the Legislature and also happens to be the governor’s party. So, elected leaders not only inked the 2020 legislation authorizing collective bargaining itself, but also readily obliged in conjuring up the Equity Office through a separate bill passed last June.

Under HB-1397, 10 of the nearly 20 new employees will serve in the Equity Office under the Department of Personnel and Administration; the rest will be assigned to four other agencies in the executive branch.

The staff will be “equity, diversity and inclusion officers” charged with directing the Equity Office, consulting state departments on best practices and coordinating statewide equity, diversity and inclusion events.

The bill further directs the Equity Office in particular to provide guidance for state agencies to issue equitable services and provide an “accepting and diverse” environment for state employees

Which sounds like a whole lot of fast, loose and vague verbiage to describe what you’d think the state already was doing – requiring equity, diversity and inclusion in its hiring practices. Then again, that wouldn’t have been nearly as helpful to Big Labor.

But wait, there’s more. As The Gazette also reported, the collective-bargaining agreement additionally created a statewide Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Task Force that will shadow the activities of the new Equity Office. And under yet another bill passed by the legislature last spring, the task force will conduct a study looking for any pay inequities based on gender, race or other protected classes and will recommend solutions. Which doubtless will cost the public even more.

Presumably, the bill for that endeavor is forthcoming.

Looks like Christmas came early for Colorado WINS. For the rest of the taxpaying public, there’s only a holiday hangover.

Denver Gazette Editorial Board