As Right to Work supporters ramped up efforts to take the law into their own hands and force the controversial Right to Work agenda onto a statewide ballot in 2014, unions say they are not only ready to fight but believe they have common sense and the public on their side.
The Right to Work supporters group, Ohioans for Workplace Freedom, say they have gathered 100,000 signatures in an effort to get the Right to Work legislation on Ohio’s statewide ballot in 2014.
Claiming to have 200 people collecting signatures of Ohioans across the state, the group plans a big push en route to collecting the 385,247 valid signatures needed by next year.
“We have grown accustomed to each different tactic that our opponents have used in an attempt to get this to become law in Ohio,” said Pat Sink, Ohio’s IUOE Local 18’s business manager. “But our resolve remains unchanged and we will continue to educate the voters so they know the truth. People need to ask themselves if big business is pushing this, how is it good for workers?”
According to “The Columbus Dispatch,” the proposed amendment states, “No law, rule, agreement or arrangement shall require any person or employer to become or remain a member of a labor organization.” The amendment also states that no one could be forced to pay dues or an assessment as part of a labor agreement.
As political interest by legislative leaders has diminished, several attempts to turn Ohio into a Right to Work state have been presented by “Workplace Freedom” supporters. It’s this persistence, and the willingness to distort the facts, that has Ohio labor groups on guard.
“No matter how many times they get shot down, Right to Work supporters keep trying. That’s why it’s so important for us to be prepared to take them head on each time,” said Sink.
Ohio unions and their supporters continue to gear up for a legislative session that could be heavily focused on Right to Work measures, which means they could be fighting Right to Work on two fronts.
Opponents of the Right to Work work laws, sometimes called “Workplace Freedom” in Ohio, contend that the initiative’s true purpose is to kill unions and worker protections, leading to a weaker middle class.
Stripping workers of their rights and freedoms would allow business owners to lower worker pay, reduce worker benefits and ignore worker rights.
To keep voters well informed on the dangers of Right-to-Work, the IUOE Local 18 union-backed advocacy group Keep Ohio’s Heritage has been running ads on cable and network television designed to educate voters on the issue.
For more information on the Right to Work and “Workplace Freedom” movements, please visit the website, www.protectohiosmiddleclass.org.
For more information:
Glenn Selig
PR firm: The Publicity Agency
Email:
Phone: (312) 546-3034
Website: www.ohioworkplacefreedom.org
SOURCE: Keep Ohio's Heritage
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