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Don't Support “Right To Work” Laws |
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Tuesday, 15 January 2008 |
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There are currently 22 “right to work” states that include Georgia, Tennessee, Florida, North Carolina, and South Carolina which fall in the jurisdiction of Local 3250. The right-wing radicals are pushing hard for a so-called "right to work" laws across the nation, which may better be called "a right to work for less law." Without Union representation in these states, employers have great latitude to exploit workers, which affect the whole economy and health of working families.
Right to work laws don't work. The Department of Labor tells us that in right to work states, the average annual pay is $38,492 while in free bargaining states it is $45,082, and those living in free bargaining states enjoy an annual per capita income over 14 percent more than in right to work states. In right to work states the poverty rates are higher than free bargaining states, while the same is true for infant mortality rates. If a person is unemployed and lives in a right to work state, you will find, according to the Department of Labor, that right to work states benefits are well below those of free bargaining states. You will also find that an injured worker will receive $162 less per week in a right to work state than in a free bargaining state, and you will find that the job fatality rate is 54 percent higher in the right to work states. Educationally, right to work states invest less in our kids than free bargaining states and have a higher dropout rate. Right to work states' health rankings are well below the national average while free bargaining states are well above that average. Right to work states are above the national average for those lacking health insurance. Finally, ask your state representative and senatorial candidates where they stand on right to work laws and say no to those who support them. In the United States today, a worker is fired or discriminated against for trying to form a union every 23 minutes. This is a major reason that every worker should support the Employee Free Choice Act. According to a survey from Peter D. Hart Research Associates 57 million people say they would join a union if they had a chance. But in today’s America, employers routinely fire, harass, intimidate and coerce workers who try to exercise their right to form a union at work. |
