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The crowd that gathered in the committee hearing room, the overflow room and Statehouse hallways was reminiscent of Senate Bill 5, the law aimed at public sector unions. Ohio voters overturned it back in 2011.

The bill Republican Representative Tom Brinkman is sponsoring would prohibit requiring employees of private companies pay union dues. Brinkman said the so-called “Right to Work” legislation is needed because the Buckeye State is losing private sector jobs to other states that have it.

Read more from 91.3 WYSO.

no_rtwCOLUMBUS, Ohio – A Cincinnati, Ohio lawmaker introduced his plan to bring a right-to-work law to Ohio despite opposition from fellow Republicans.

The proposal from Rep. Tom Brinkman (R-Mount Lookout) would prohibit mandatory union membership at workplaces. The change would give employees the choice to opt out of unions and their dues. Twenty-five states have right-to-work laws, including recently passed proposals in Wisconsin, Michigan and Indiana.

Read more from Telegraph-Forum. 

No RTWColumbus, Ohio – An Ohio lawmaker said he plans to introduce a “right-to-work” bill that would prohibit private-sector labor union membership as a condition of employment.

State Rep. Tom Brinkman said Wednesday that his bill, which he plans to introduce next month, would ban “closed shops” and forbid unions from charging “fair-share fees” to non-union workers at private-sector workplaces. The Cincinnati Republican said he intends to introduce the bill sometime next month.

The lawmaker said his legislation would not apply to public-sector unions, which were controversially targeted with similar restrictions by Senate Bill 5 in 2011 until Ohio voters rejected it.

Read more from Cleveland.com. 

No RTWThe sponsor of a proposed ballot measure aimed at making union dues voluntary for public employees may well drop the initiative after receiving a politically unpalatable ballot title.

Portland attorney Jill Gibson said she is leaning toward abandoning the proposal after the Oregon Supreme Court upheld a ballot description that will make the measure harder to sell to voters.

The measure, which is being closely watched by the state’s unions, would end the state law requiring public employees represented by union contracts to pay dues regardless of whether they join. Instead, dues would be voluntary for non-members.

Read more from The Oregonian. 

Missouri Right To Work VetoMissouri State Legislative Director Ken Menges asks Missouri SMART members to join in the fight against right-to-work. Although Governor Jay Nixon vetoed the right-to-work legislation June 4 at the SMART Sheet Metal Local 36 facility, a battle has been raging in the state to get that veto overturned.

A veto session is scheduled for Wednesday, September 16, 2015 to revisit the right-to-work legislation and to overturn the veto.

“We have worked hard since the legislative session ended in May to visit and show support for both our Democrat and Republican friends,” Menges said. “I would like to extend a special thanks to Assistant State Director Jason Hayden (Local 1405 – St. Louis), Local Legislative Representatives Thad Krawczyk (Local 933 – Jefferson City, Mo.), Josh Stallings (Local 1823 – St. Louis), Gerald Wohlgemuth (Local 226 – Moberly, Mo.) and Dan Coleman (Local 1780 – Kansas City, Mo.) for spending several days canvassing door-to-door, working to get letters from union members to their legislators and thanking them for their support.

“According to the Missouri AFL-CIO we have had nearly 20,000 letters and calls go out to legislators, which is phenomenal.”

A rally was held September 12 in preparation for the fight against Governor Nixon’s veto being overturned. The rally was attended by hundreds of union members across the state, including SMART membership. Governor Jay Nixon was a keynote speaker at the event.

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Missouri Governor Jay Nixon addresses attendees at an anti-right-to-work rally
Sept. 12 rally against overturning right-to-work veto is attended by hundreds of union members.
Sept. 12 rally against overturning right-to-work veto is attended by hundreds of union members.

Missouri Right To Work VetoJEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — A major Republican donor, David Humphreys, who had been relatively quiet donated half a million dollars to a new committee Sept. 15 that is rumored to be targeting Republicans that support Gov. Jay Nixon’s veto of Right-to-Work legislation.
Days ago, the “Committee for Accountable Government in Missouri” filed with the Missouri Ethics Commission and Humphreys, President and CEO of Joplin-based Tamko Building Products and a longtime generous Republican donor, dropped $500K into the committee.
Read more from The Missouri Times.

Missouri Right To Work VetoUnion members are making sure Missouri Republican lawmakers who voted against ‘right-to-work’ earlier this year know that they will have union support during the next election.
Missouri’s chapter of the AFL-CIO held a rally and knocked on doors Saturday in Jefferson County ahead of the General Assembly’s veto session next Wednesday. That’s when a vote to override Gov. Jay Nixon’s veto of a  “right-to-work” bill could be brought to the floor. The measure would bar making union dues a condition of employment.  Currently a business or union can require dues when a majority of workers have voted to organize.
Read more from St. Louis Public Radio.

Sept. 12 rally against overturning right-to-work veto is attended by hundreds of union members.
Sept. 12 rally against overturning right-to-work veto is attended by hundreds of union members.

Missouri Right To Work VetoJefferson City, Mo. — Not enough Missouri lawmakers appear to support a contentious right-to-work measure to overturn Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon’s veto of the bill, an Associated Press analysis shows.
Interviews with lawmakers indicate House Republicans in favor of right to work are short of the needed two-thirds majority required to overturn Nixon’s veto heading into Wednesday’s legislative session.
At least nine of the 23 Republican House members who voted against the legislation in May told AP they plan to support Nixon’s veto if the proposal is brought up for an override vote, and another has publicly said she still opposes right to work. The bill would prohibit workplace contracts that require union fees to be collected from nonmembers.
Read more from Springfield News-Leader.

By Missouri Governor Jay Nixon

missouri_mapWe celebrate Labor Day to honor American workers and the role they continue to play in creating a strong and prosperous nation. Labor Day reminds us that the rights won by the labor movement benefit all workers, and calls us to keep fighting to keep the American Dream alive for every Missouri family.
Skilled workers build our homes, teach our kids, keep our streets safe, and maintain our roads and bridges. Here in Missouri, skilled union labor builds the best-selling truck in America, the Ford F-150, and the 2015 Motor Trend Truck of the Year, the Chevy Colorado. Union hands build the F/A-18, the nation’s first strike-fighter that continues to fight terror and protect our servicemen and women around the globe.
Read more from Labor Tribune.

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Missouri Governor Jay Nixon vetoes right-to-work as union members look on at the SMART Local 36 union hall.

Hughes
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Almost half of states in the United States today are right to work states. ‘Right to work’ is a statute or law that prohibits union security agreements between labor unions and employers. These laws govern the extent to which an established union cannot require an employee’s membership, payment of union dues or fees as a condition of employment either before or after hiring.
The Taft-Hartley Act created a law for this provision. It supersedes, but continues most of the provisions of the NLRB (National Labor Relation Board). In addition, it provides for an 80-day injunction against strikes that endanger public health and safety, and bans closed shops, secondary boycotts, jurisdictional strikes and certain other union practices. Since 2000, four states have become a ‘Right to work’ state.
These laws represent challenges for unions to promote the welfare of their members and workers in general. Some of our bus locals operate under these laws, which can make our work more difficult, but not impossible.
Organizing and representing our current and new membership is a common goal that we all can share in our locals. We should organize on a regular basis. As an officer, organizing can be an asset to the local’s membership. Keeping organizing at the forefront of membership makes everyone a part of the team.
Representation is critical. Let’s know our agreement and be prompt with answers to membership questions. As members, let’s talk about the importance of your union, (what it provides, working conditions, safety and what it has done for you). Be involved by attending union meetings and union functions that the locals may have. Encourage your brothers and sisters to attend as well. And most importantly, ask questions.
Some locals have adopted new-employee orientations. This gives employees a first-hand opportunity to meet their local representatives and for them to interpret the current collective bargaining agreement (CBA). Additionally, it gives representatives an opportunity to explain how the union works in an employee’s best interest.
Together, we are powerful with greater and engaged membership!