{"id":26701,"date":"2016-05-23T10:29:53","date_gmt":"2016-05-23T14:29:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.smart-union.org\/?p=26701"},"modified":"2016-05-23T10:29:53","modified_gmt":"2016-05-23T14:29:53","slug":"momentum-shifting-state-battles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.smart-union.org\/momentum-shifting-state-battles\/","title":{"rendered":"Momentum shifting in state battles","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s not just federal elections that have an impact on working families. As we were reminded all too well in places like Wisconsin and Michigan, state and local elections can have far reaching consequences.
\nFor the past six years, working families have been placed on the defensive by a flurry of state and local measures looking to break the power of collective bargaining all across this country.
\nDespite ongoing losses, unions are gaining strength, fighting back\u2014and winning\u2014with new approaches, emphasizing a renewed focus on the grassroots and building awareness of legislative issues.
\nWe are starting to notch the victories that will eventually turn the tide against these right-wing attacks. Below are recent examples\u2014be they wins or temporary setbacks\u2014from three states where the battle for working families is being waged.
\nWEST VIRGINIA<\/strong>
\nUnion-busting by override<\/strong>
\nDespite a long, hard-fought battle, West Virginia became the nation\u2019s 26th Right-to-Work for less state earlier this year. West Virginia stands out for the historic and bloody battles workers waged there for generations. West Virginia\u2019s coal miners were at the forefront of the fights that brought better pay, safety, unionization and solidarity to working families in the early half of the 20th century.
\nThe final right-to-work vote resulted from the Republican legislature\u2019s override of a veto from Governor Earl Ray Tomblin (D), who opposes right-to-work. West Virginia Republicans also voted to eliminate that state\u2019s prevailing wage law\u2014and overrode Gov. Tomblin\u2019s veto of that bill as well.
\nWhile the events in West Virginia outline another temporary setback, working families have once again won the day in New Mexico.
\nNEW MEXICO<\/strong>
\nUnion win shocks opponents<\/strong>
\nThe 2016 legislative session was an unqualified success for New Mexico\u2019s Sheet Metal Local 49. With anti-worker legislation whipping through the country, New Mexico has shown itself to be an emerging labor stronghold\u2014with tactics and pro-worker forces to be reckoned with.
\nWith damaging bills such as those designed to strip workers (both union and non-union) of their union-negotiated prevailing wages, and the so called, Right-to-Work bill (the \u201cEmployee Preference Act\u201d) being pushed by the Republicans, workers\u2019 rights in New Mexico are under serious threat.
\nYet, SM Local 49 members were able to defeat this legislation and keep it from reaching the Governor\u2019s desk. The winning effort saw Local 49 work in collaboration with the New Mexico Building and Constructions Trades Council, the New Mexico Federation of Labor, and many other labor organizations.
\nGrassroots effort plus research for our allies<\/strong>
\nLabor\u2019s victory has left the state\u2019s Republican-controlled House in shock\u2014and now aware of our political influence in the Capitol.
\nSM Local 49 has been a crucial asset and resource in this defeat of the attack on \u201clittle Davis-Bacon,\u201d providing our Democratic decision makers with facts and research on public works projects. The backup material was used to discredit claims made by the partisan New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions, which is staffed by antiworker zealots.
\nAlong with the research support, a special thank-you for the members who sent handwritten letters to their legislators in opposition of these bills as well as for all the other SM Local 49 members, staff, family and friends who gave so much of their time and effort to secure the future of New Mexican workers.
\nThis fight is not over, but with everyone pulling together through this 2016 election to support candidates who support us, we will be more than ready when the attack inevitably begins again in the 2017 Session. This battle proves that together, we can make things happen!
\nKENTUCKY<\/strong>
\nResurgence puts RTW on hold<\/strong>
\nIn Kentucky, labor-backed candidates won three of four special House elections in March, culminating a comeback that left right-to-work for dead in that state. For now.
\nRight-to-work was very much alive last fall and through the winter as Republican Matt Bevin was elected Governor on a platform that included right-to-work as a feature. The state Senate has a strong Republican majority that favors right-to-work.
\nGov. Bevin\u2019s election, however, left the Kentucky House of Representatives, then held by Democrats by a slim margin, as the only obstacle blocking right-to-work from being the law of the land in Kentucky. And four seats had special elections ahead of an anticipated vote.
\nThe GOP was expected to sweep all four special elections, to gain a House majority. Further, a GOP sweep\u2014or even wins in three of the races\u2014would have given the Republicans significant momentum going into this fall\u2019s elections. Their pro-right to work stance alienated them from Kentucky\u2019s working families who saw the GOP\u2019s anti-worker agenda exposed for all to see. Now momentum seems to be with the Democrats.
\nELECTION YEAR: EACH OF US MUST STEP UP<\/strong>
\nEvents in each of these states shows the importance each of our votes have in swaying the lives of millions of working families. Whether we vote, and the decisions we make when we do vote, will determine the course of future attempts by anti-worker politicians and their wealthy benefactors to cut wages and benefits so they can suck up every last bit of corporate profit.
\nThe labor movement stands as the last line of defense against those efforts. VOTE UNION! From State offices to the U.S. Senate to President, if we to stand united like they did in New Mexico, we can beat back these assaults on working families and reverse the anti-labor tide that is eroding our jobs, livelihoods and families\u2019 futures.<\/p>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s not just federal elections that have an impact on working families. As we were reminded all too well in places like Wisconsin and Michigan, state and local elections can have far reaching consequences. For the past six years, working families have been placed on the defensive by a flurry of state and local measures […]<\/p>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"author":9,"featured_media":25112,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[12,9,988,18,1],"tags":[],"member_types":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMomentum shifting in state battles - SMART Union<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.smart-union.org\/momentum-shifting-state-battles\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Momentum shifting in state battles - SMART Union\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"It\u2019s not just federal elections that have an impact on working families. 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