New Hampshire has always balanced individual liberty with pragmatic governance. However, in today’s hyper-competitive labor market, we face a silent crisis: the steady drain of our “best and brightest” from public service to the private sector. From the teachers shaping our children’s futures to the engineers snowplowing our highways, the quality of our infrastructure depends entirely on the caliber of the people we hire.
The New Hampshire House currently faces a straightforward but vital question: should public employees have the option for freedom to negotiate for themselves, or should the state continue to mandate one-size-fits-all contracts? House Bill 1704, the Public Employee Choice Act, provides the answer by prioritizing talent over bureaucracy.
The landscape of state employment has also shifted. Today, as just one example of the 13,149 state department workers, 57.38 percent are non-union. This shift speaks volumes and signals that the modern worker values flexibility. In the private sector, roughly 89 percent of U.S. employees negotiate their terms independently because they know that flexibility matters.
A young parent may value schedule flexibility over a slight pay increase; a mid-career professional might prioritize salary over specific long-term benefits. When a single worker opts in for healthcare, they can get the right plan for themselves instead of being forced to take a blended average plan that represents a family of four, saving the taxpayer an untold fortune. When rigid contracts lock compensation into unwanted benefits and reward tenure over effectiveness, high performers walk away. We cannot afford to be a “training ground” where the public pays to train experts only to watch them leave for private firms that offer more personalized respect.
A persistent misconception about HB 1704 is that it seeks to dismantle unions. On the contrary, this bill is about expanding options, not removing them:
- Preserving Union Choice: It does not ban unions or eliminate collective bargaining. Employees who prefer the union model remain free to use it.
- Restoring Individual Freedom: It allows employees who are not union members to negotiate directly with their employer, treating them like the professionals they are.
- Solving the “Free Rider” Problem: Currently, unions are forced to represent all employees in a unit, even those who don’t pay dues. HB 1704 allows unions to focus resources exclusively on their members, while non-members carry their own weight.
When we lose a talented educator or a skilled technician to a corporate competitor, the taxpayer loses the investment made in that individual. HB 1704 addresses this by allowing employers to match compensation to real-world needs. It moves us away from outdated “Last-In, First-Out” rules and toward a model that values performance and impact.
If we want our schools to be the best and our state to be competitive, we must have the best people on the job. We must step into the labor market with both feet and lead from the front.
“Live Free or Die” is more than a motto; it reflects a belief that individuals are capable of making their own choices. Public employees serve our communities every day, and they deserve the same opportunities and flexibility found in the private market.
HB 1704 isn’t just about employment law; it’s about ensuring New Hampshire remains first in the nation for quality of life. The House has an opportunity to modernize public employment and empower workers without taking anything away from anyone. That is the New Hampshire way.