Unions stand tough as Missouri House opens session with ‘Right to Work’ hearing

Just a week after Missouri House Speaker Tim Jones (R-Eureka) set out on a statewide Right to Work tour, the “Show-Me” state continues its aggressive pace with a hearing on a potential Right to Work bill in the opening legislative session  of the Missouri House.

At the Monday hearing in the House Workplace Development and Workplace Safety Committee, the bill, currently known only as “right to work,” was at the top of the House agenda.

“This is a necessary bill if Missouri wishes to re-gain competitive standing with the states around us,” said the proposal’s sponsor, Rep. Eric Burlison (R-Springfield) as reported by Bloomberg Businessweek.

Rep. Burlison’s claims, however, were quickly countered by St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay.

“The men and women of organized labor are not our enemies, they are our allies,” said Slay, as reported by Bloomberg Businessweek .

Continuing to watch the Missouri battles closely while in the midst of their own Right to Work fight, Ohio labor supporters aren’t surprised by how quickly these events are taking place.

“Watching these events unfold in Missouri should serve as a warning for how quickly the tide can turn,” said Pat Sink, Ohio’s IUOE Local 18’s business manager. “It’s scenarios like this that make preparation, above all else, the most important thing.”

Last week Missouri House Speaker Tim Jones (R) took his message directly to state voters on a statewide tour entrenching Right to Work as a top priority for the GOP majority in the coming year.

While some observers believe that a ballot initiative is a losing cause for Right to Work supporters, Sink knows that nothing can be taken for granted.

“The harder we work to educate workers on Right to Work, the easier our job will be to defeat it,” said Sink. “Still, any opportunity for Right to Work to force its way into our lives shouldn’t be taken lightly.”

In Ohio, union supporters have continued to press forward with efforts designed to educate the public on the dangers of Right to Work and ultimately defeat it before it ever gets to a ballot measure.

Opponents of the Right to Work bills, sometimes called “Workplace Freedom,” 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.

SOURCE:  Keep Ohio's Heritage

This press release is distributed by PR NewsChannel. Your News. Everywhere.