With Kentucky Republicans enacting Right to Work on a county by county basis, Ohio labor supporters are applauding the recent efforts by Kentucky union groups to stop the controversial legislation.
“It’s always uplifting to see labor groups come together to fight for the greater good,” said Pat Sink, Ohio’s International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 18’s business manager. “By fighting Right to Work, unions are not only defending themselves, they’re also defending the middle class.”
Local 18 covers four northern Kentucky counties: Boone, Campbell, Kenton and Pendleton.
Announced late last week, nine labor unions have filed a lawsuit in the Kentucky federal court to stop Hardin County from enacting recently passed Right to Work legislation. Hardin County became the fifth Right to Work county in the state the day before the lawsuit’s filing.
Claiming the new legislation violates the National Labor Relations Act, the group states the lawsuit could expand to challenge recently passed laws in Warren, Simpson, Fulton and Todd counties.
The unions’ attorney, Irwin Cutler, maintains that the federal law only allows for that type of legislation to pass at the state or territorial level.
On December 8, Warren County, home to the sizeable General Motors factory that builds Chevrolet Corvettes, became the first Right to Work county in Kentucky by passing the local ordinance 5-1.
With Right to Work chattering continuing to rise, union supporters in Ohio have been intently studying each development.
“In a perfect world we wouldn’t have to deal with this issue at all,” said Sink. “This is a troubling development that hits some of us at home. We must fight Right to Work however and wherever it shows its ugly head.”
Opponents of the recent Ohio Right to Work effort, including the “Workplace Freedom” bills, contend that the initiative’s true purpose is to kill unions and worker protections, ultimately leading to a weaker middle class.
By stripping workers of their rights and freedoms, business owners would be free to lower worker pay, reduce worker benefits and ignore worker rights.
Whether Republicans utilize “Paycheck Protection,” “Workplace Freedom,” or other Right to Work tactics, opponents remain dedicated to ensuring the voting public knows the underlying nature behind the GOP’s divisive agenda.
SOURCE: Keep Ohio's Heritage
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