New Missouri right-to-work law suspended

It has been a while since I had some good news to report on from unions in this country. This is one of those stories. Labor and union interests prevailed by using petitions to stop a "right-to-work"-for-less law passed in Missouri. Thanks to their efforts that "right-to-work" has been suspended. -SJ Otto

 

From News-Leader:

Opponents forced the suspension Friday of a new Missouri law banning mandatory union fees after they delivered dozens of boxes of signed petitions demanding it be put to a public vote.

More than 1,000 people hoping to block the right-to-work law rallied at the Capitol and marched to the Secretary of State's Office to hand off signatures.

Republican Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft's spokeswoman Maura Browning said that means "essentially the rule is suspended now." If enough of the signatures are valid, it will be up to voters to decide whether to ditch the law or keep it in place.

"This is our living," said Tamara Maxwell, a union member who works at Kansas City's Ford assembly plant and was among those rallying in Jefferson City. "We should be in control of that, not one person just signing it away."

Gov. Eric Greitens and other GOP supporters have touted right-to-work as a way to keep Missouri competitive in the fight to bring jobs and business to the state and argue it gives workers a choice on whether to join unions. The Republican governor signed right-to-work into law in February, and it was set to take effect Aug. 28.

"We passed Right-to-Work to give workers a choice to join a union," Sikeston Republican Rep. Holly Rehder said in a Friday statement. "Union bosses are afraid of giving workers the freedom to decide if a union is right for the worker and are intent on maintaining their power to force workers to unionize in Missouri."

A coalition of union members and other opponents argue the policy would hurt labor organizations and could mean lower wages. It says it gathered more than 300,000 signed petitions to put it to a public vote. More than 100,000 valid signatures are needed to put the measure on the ballot.

For the rest click here.