FRANKFORT — Gov. Paul Patton is proposing to give 30,000 state government employees a chance to choose labor unions to represent them on a council that would advise him.

        Mr. Patton planned to sign an order to that effect in the Capitol Rotunda at 3 p.m.

        A draft of the order indicates that it would not require binding arbitration or mandatory deduction of employees' dues. For that reason, Mr. Patton contends that the order does not establish a procedure for collective bargaining.

        Mr. Patton has said he needs a better way of communicating with state employees. The advisory council would meet at least once a quarter and with Mr. Patton at least twice a year to discuss employees' concerns.

        Any agreements between Mr. Patton and the unions could be undone by the General Assembly. In addition, the executive order would expire if not ratified by the legislature next year.

        Mr. Patton, elected with considerable labor support in 1995 and 1999, endorsed but did not push legislation last year and in 1998 to grant collective bargaining to state employees. The legislation failed both times.

        Rick Hurd, who follows union trends as a professor of labor studies at Cornell University, said about 30 states give public employees fairly comprehensive bargaining rights. A few others give limited “meet and confer” rights to public employees.

        Fifteen states grant no bargaining rights, but local governments have that option, Mr. Hurd said. “So, unionization is present in all of the states that do not have collective bargaining. Clearly, the union contracts are more secure” in states with bargaining laws, Mr. Hurd said.

        Unions now are strongest in the public sector, representing about 35 percent of federal, state, county and municipal employees, Mr. Hurd said. Less than 9 percent of private-sector workers are union members, he said.

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