Up to this point, we have assumed that some form of collective
bargaining between local governments and employee
representatives will at times be desirable for government
employees, because it helps them improve their compensation and
working conditions, and for local governments, because
collective representation and bargaining might improve morale
among their employees. This paper has examined a wide range of
proposals intended to allow collective bargaining, while reining
in various abuses of the process that have taken place under
PERA. Any of these proposals would lessen the cost and improve
the effectiveness of local government.  Many of the proposals
might strike labor union advocates as severe, yet all spring
from a fundamental principle of American governance: that
government exists to serve the public and is answerable to the
public. Union advocates might argue that the reform proposals
listed above would render government employee unions
ineffective. If that is the case, then we must be prepared to