Sec. 143.203. GENERAL PROVISIONS RELATING TO AGREEMENTS, RECOGNITION, AND STRIKES. (a) A municipality may not be denied local control over the wages, salaries, rates of pay, hours of work, and other terms and conditions of employment, or other state-mandated personnel issues, if the public employer and the fire fighters association recognized as the sole and exclusive bargaining agent for all officers covered by this subchapter come to a mutual agreement on any of the terms listed above. If no agreement is reached, the existing state laws, local ordinances, and civil service rules remain unaffected. All agreements shall be reduced to writing. Nothing in this subchapter shall require either party to meet and confer on any issue or reach an agreement.

(b) A public employer may only meet and confer if the fire fighters association recognized under this subchapter as the sole and exclusive bargaining agent does not advocate the illegal right to strike by public employees.

(c) Fire fighters of a municipality may not engage in strikes or organized work stoppages against this state or a political subdivision of this state. A fire fighter who participates in a strike forfeits all civil service rights, reemployment rights, and any other rights, benefits, or privileges the fire fighter enjoys as a result of employment or prior employment, except that the right of an individual to cease work may not be abridged if the individual is not acting in concert with others in an organized work stoppage.

Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 676, Sec. 5, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.