DENVER — Under a sign that said “Governor Polis Turned His Back on Us,” hundreds of Colorado workers gathered on the steps of the Capitol Thursday afternoon for a “Stand with Workers Rally.”
The rally was in response to the governor’s veto of three bills last Friday that were in support of workers' rights.
“I'm excited. The way labor has come together today. We haven't seen that in a long time, and it's important that workers in the state of Colorado understand the kind of power they have when they joined together,” said Mark Thompson, a carpenter who drove up from Colorado Springs and is part of the Western States Regional Council of Carpenters.
One vetoed bill would have prevented wage theft (HB24-1008), another aimed to prevent employer retaliation (HB24-1260), and the third was designed to improve HVAC systems in public schools (HB24-1307).
“They would have protected the rights of workers all across the state workers that drive this economy that we all depend on,” said Senator Jessie Danielson (D-Jefferson County), who sponsored all three bills.
In a statement from the governor’s office, Gov. Jared Polis vetoed the bills in their final form because they "were not in the best interest of the state," and listed specific changes to each bill that would have made them acceptable. While the governor’s office claimed that Polis sought a compromise on these bills, Danielson argued that the proposed changes would have gutted the bills’ critical protections.
“We were unwilling to go that far because it would have made the bills useless. From my experience, his office never reached out to me with any compromise language,” said Danielson.
Despite the vetoes, the rally participants remained undeterred. Danielson and other bill sponsors plan to reintroduce the bills in the next session, and the workers pledged their continued support.
“We're not done. We will be running these bills again. We will continue to fight for both union and non-union workers,” said Thompson.
Several labor organizations, including the Colorado Chamber, the Hispanic Contractors of Colorado, and the Electrical Contractors Rocky Mountain, supported the vetoes, arguing that the bills would have been problematic for their businesses.
In the statement, Gov, Polis expressed openness to working on the policies ahead of the next session to ensure they support the objectives of all sponsors and organizations.
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