House Republicans push forward anti-union ‘right-to-work’ bill

On Wednesday, Republican Reps. Steve King (IA) and Joe Wilson (SC) re-introduced a so-called right-to-work bill that would significantly hamper unions across the country and likely lower wages for all Americans.

Republicans have proposed this kind of legislation before; King introduced a similar bill almost exactly a year ago. But now they may feel emboldened by having an ally in the White House. On the campaign trail, President Trump said he is “100 percent” in favor of right-to-work laws.

U.S. Appeals Court Upholds Indiana's Right-To-Work Law

WASHINGTON, Sept 2 (Reuters) - The validity of an Indiana state law that bars companies from requiring workers to join a union and pay union dues was affirmed on Tuesday by a U.S. appeals court in a win for "right to work" advocates.

The Indiana law does not violate the U.S. Constitution or federal labor statutes, a three-judge appellate panel said, agreeing with a lower court's decision to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the law.

Fraser Institute Blasts Canada's 'Biased' Labour Relations Laws In New Report

Just when it seemed that the debate over right-to-work laws had calmed, Canada’s most well-known conservative think-tank has released a report blasting the country’s “biased” labour relations laws for stalling jobs and investment.

After assessing various labour relations laws in the private sector for their “flexibility” — defined for the purpose of their index as “less bias towards favouring unions over employers” — the latest report, released Thursday by the Fraser Institute, found that all 10 provinces lagged behind the 50 U.S. states.

President of the OFL talks 'right to work' laws, union attacks and diversity

It’s the Friday afternoon on the last day of the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) convention and Sid Ryan, President of the OFL, is tired. For a week he’s been leading the convention through its paces, which included a protest to raise the minimum wage and a whole host of eminent speakers, including Maude Barlow and the Official Opposition leader, Thomas Mulcair.

Most significantly, delegates voted to approve a new common front plan that will see the OFL expand its activism outside of its traditional labour scope.

Right-To-Work Laws In U.S. May Be Hitting Canadian Incomes: CIBC

Right-to-work laws in U.S. states may be putting downward pressure on Canadians’ incomes, a study from CIBC suggests.

The study comes days after the Conservative Party of Canada made right-to-work a part of its policy platform.

Declining unionization rates are likely “reducing worker bargaining power, particularly as Canadian workers now compete with ‘right to work’ states south of the border,” CIBC economists Avery Shenfeld and Emanuella Enenajor wrote. “That could reduce the wage inflation pace at any given level of unemployment.”

Tories' Right-To-Work Motion Marks 'Shift To The Far Right': Critics

Canadian labour leaders say they are disturbed — but not shocked — that the Tories have adopted a number of union-busting measures in their official party policy, including support for U.S.-style right-to-work legislation.

Delegates at the Conservative party convention in Calgary last weekend nearly unanimously supported policy proposals that would require enhanced financial transparency from unions and allow members to opt out of contributions to political and social causes.

Labour Reform Up For Debate At Tory Convention

A number of labour reform proposals on the agenda at this weekend’s Conservative party convention could be signs that the party is shifting further to the right, political observers say.

At least nine resolutions for amendments to the Conservative party’s policy book seek to crack down on the power of organized labour. The labour reform proposals are sponsored by various riding associations in Ontario, Quebec and Alberta.

Many call for an end to union political involvement, but one amendment seeks a more radical change to the Rand formula, a staple of Canadian labour relations that requires all employees in a unionized environment to pay union dues regardless of whether they join.

Right-To-Work Laws: Canada Would See Income Inequality Rise Under Weakened Unions, Study Says

The passage of right-to-work legislation in this country would pose “the biggest blow” yet to Canadian unions after a years-long erosion of labour laws and would result in rising income inequality, a prominent labour rights group argues in a new paper.

The research report called “Unions Matter,” released Wednesday by the Canadian Foundation for Labour Rights, raises the alarm about what it sees as a growing interest in American-style right-to-work laws among Conservative politicians in Canada. It also catalogues 200 labour laws restricting collective bargaining and trade union rights which have been passed by federal and provincial governments since the 1980s.

'Right-to-work' will cause labour chaos, experts warn

OTTAWA — The bitter teachers’ dispute that has caused chaos in schools across the province is setting the stage for a new wave of labour unrest Ontario has not seen in decades, experts warn.

With Tory leader Tim Hudak, the favourite to win the next provincial election, talking tough against unions and promoting a so-called right-to-work agenda, they warn that Ontario is heading for labour discontent that could cripple the province. The experts say if teachers’ unions today are up in arms because the Liberal government is curbing their right to negotiate contracts or go on strike, Ontarians can only imagine what would happen if the Tories enact a right-to-work law that could strip unions of their ability to function and hasten their demise.

Ontario Tories' 'Right-To-Work' Plan Would Make Province 'The Next Alabama'

TORONTO - The Progressive Conservatives' call to make Ontario a so-called "right-to-work" province is "misguided" and would mean lower salaries and a weaker economy, the Liberals and New Democrats warned Friday.

"It just doesn’t reflect Canadian values," Labour Minister Linda Jeffrey said in an interview.

"I believe it would mean lower wages and reduced buying power, and would have a very serious effect on the economy."

Ontario Tories like American-style right-to-work legislation

Tories are eager to follow in the footsteps of Michigan’s anti-union legislation next week and turn Ontario into a right-to-work jurisdiction where workers can opt out of joining unions and paying dues.

The move is a near the top of the agenda for the Progressive Conservatives led by Tim Hudak should they be elected come the next general election.

You Hate "Right To Work" Laws More Than You Know. Here's Why

"From now on, white women and white men will be forced into organizations with black African apes whom they will have to call ‘brother’ or lose their jobs."
    — Vance Muse, founder of the "right to work" anti-labor campaign

The Michigan GOP apparently blindsided everyone with the union-busting "right to work" laws they just rammed through the state. Certainly my labor friends were caught off-guard tactically by the Republicans’ speed and choice of battleground.

Rick Snyder: Right To Work Bills Signed Into Law In Michigan

WASHINGTON -- Gov. Rick Snyder (R) officially made Michigan a "right-to-work" state on Tuesday, signing into law two bills that significantly diminish the power of unions.

"I have signed these bills into law. ... We are moving forward on the topic of workplace fairness and equality," he said at a press conference on Tuesday evening, just hours after the state House passed the bills.

Thousands Protest Michigan’s Anti-Union Law, But Deep Pockets of Right-Wing Backers Prevail

Michigan Republican Governor Rick Snyder has signed into law two highly controversial anti-union bills, officially making the historic union stronghold the 24th so-called "right-to-work" state in the country. On Tuesday, thousands of demonstrators flooded the state capitol in Lansing to denounce the bill as an organized attack against labor that will lower wages and diminish collective bargaining rights. We’re joined by two people who attended the demonstrations: Katie Oppenheim, a registered nurse and President of the University of Michigan Professional Nurse Council; Andy Potter, state vice president of the Michigan Corrections Organization and the chair of SEIU’s National Republican Member Advisory Committee. We also speak with Lee Fang, a reporting fellow with The Investigative Fund at The Nation Institute, about how the bills were pushed through by powerful corporate interests and secretive billionaires. Michigan lawmakers are also using the lame-duck session to significantly restrict women’s reproductive rights with three bills that would ban abortion coverage in many insurance plans, and another bill that would allow employers and medical professionals to refuse to cover or provide health treatment on moral grounds.

Video
Source: Democracy Now!
Author: --

Right-To-Work Legislation Could Come To Canada, Opposition Warns

OTTAWA - The federal opposition parties are warning that so-called "right-to-work" legislation that has passed in Michigan could soon come to Canada.

Thousands of people in that state protested Tuesday as the first of two laws designed to weaken union power passed in Michigan's Republican-dominated House of Representatives.

Michigan GOP Push Through Anti-Union, Elite-Backed "Right to Work" Law Before House Majority Shrinks

Thousands are expected to protest in Michigan today as Republican Gov. Rick Snyder prepares to sign a pair of anti-union bills that would make his the 24th so-called "right to work" state in the country. Pushed through before Democrats gain five House seats in the new legislature next month, opponents call the effort an organized attack against labor that will suppress wages and weaken collective bargaining rights. “He has decided to support the most divisive piece of legislation that has ever come forward in Michigan,” says Democratic Michigan State Representative Brandon Dillon. “You’ll see by the people gathered at the capitol today that he is tearing the state apart.”

Video
Source: Democracy Now!
Author: --

Obama Says Michigan Labor Battle About 'The Right To Work For Less Money'

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama weighed in on the contentious labor battle playing out in Michigan, condemning the Republican push to make Michigan a so-called "right-to-work" state as nothing more than a partisan maneuver that will hurt the working class.

"We should do everything we can to keep creating good middle-class jobs that help folks rebuild security for their families," Obama said Monday in a speech at the Daimler Detroit Diesel plant.

Michigan GOP Passes 'Right To Work' Legislation

Following the Michigan House's lead, the state Senate passed a right-to-work measure on Thursday evening -- just hours after Gov. Rick Snyder and top GOP Republicans announced the bills.

Despite impassioned debate from Senate Democrats, the measure passed with a 22-16 vote. According to the Associated Press, four Republican state Senators joined all 12 of their Democratic counterparts in opposition to the right-to-work bill. It passed the Michigan House by a vote of 58-52 earlier in the evening. During the House vote, Democrats walked off the floor in protest after at least eight protesters were arrested, crowds were pepper-sprayed and the Capitol building locked down.

Right-to-Work: The (Ayn?) Rand Formula

There's reluctance among Canadian proponents to call for it by name. But Right-to-Work (longer, harder, without representation or recourse, for less money and fewer sick days or pee breaks) seems to be the flavour du jour amongst… ahem… politicians of a certain age.

(By which I mean the Age of Dickens. Pip-pip, cheerio, y'all.)

There are some folks who think we hit the high-water mark for social progress in the workplace somewhere between Cro-magnon Man and Ward Cleaver. So to bring things back into balance, a few individuals and their well-connected friends are hell-bent on dragging unionized workers -- for their own good, of course -- behind the woodshed to administer a free-market thrashing.