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The Truth About 'Right-to-Work'- For Less
Meanwhile, it allows workers to pay nothing and get all the benefits of union membership. “Right-to-work” laws say that unions must represent all eligible employees, whether they pay dues or not. This forces unions to use their time and members’ dues money to provide union benefits to “free riders” who are not willing to pay their fair share. “Right-to-work” laws lower wages for everyone. The average worker in a “right-to-work” state makes about $4,830 a year less than workers in other states ($31,829 compared with $26,998). Weekly wages are nearly $70 greater in free-bargaining states than in right-to-work states ($612 versus $545). Working families in states without “right-to-work” laws have higher wages and benefit from healthier tax bases that improve their quality of life. Federal law already protects workers who don’t want to join a union. Supporters claim “right-to-work” laws protect employees from being forced to join unions. However, federal law already does this, as well as protecting non-members from paying for union activities that violate their religious or political beliefs. This “individual freedom” argument is a sham. “Right-to-work” endangers safety and health standards. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the rate of workplace deaths is 41 percent higher in states with “right-to-work,” where unions can’t speak up on behalf of workers. “Right-to-work” laws just aren’t fair to dues-paying members. If a non-union worker is fired illegally, the union must use its time and money to defend him or her, even if that requires going through a costly legal process. Everyone benefits, so all should share in the costs.
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To
set the record (and the name) straight, “right-to-work” for
less doesn’t guarantee any rights. In fact, by weakening unions and
collective bargaining, it weakens the best job security protection that
exists: the union contract.