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Scott Vows No Union Busting In Florida

MIAMI (CBS4) - Florida Governor Rick Scott said Tuesday that the state shouldn't follow the lead of Wisconsin and strip away collective bargaining rights from public employees.

According to the News Service of Florida, even though Scott is seeking an increased contribution to the state pension fund; he has no plans to put together a plan like Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker.

Wisconsin's governor has proposed effectively ending any union from having the power to negotiate anything past salary increases in the state. It would also tie wage increases to the Consumer Price Index and health care contributions would more than double.

All of this seems to be a step too far for Governor Scott.

"My belief is as long as people know what they're doing, collective bargaining is fine," Scott told WFLA Radio in Tallahassee.

Scott continued saying that what he means is that as long as the discussion is honest about what benefits employees are getting, he has no objection to public employees being members of unions.

When it came to the pension plan, Governor Scott told WFLA Radio, "It's fair that employees pay 5 percent. That's absolutely fair."

(© 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The News Service of Florida contributed to this report.)

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