Secret Ballot Watch

Your state may give you a “right-to-work,” but can it protect you from the effects of card check?   

The simple answer is NO. The Employee Free Choice Act, now being considered in Congress, can even apply to the 22 states that have “right-to-work” laws.

“Right-to-work” means these states forbid unions from requiring workers to join them or pay dues as a condition of employment.  Currently, states that have right-to-work laws are:

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Alabama
Arizona
Arkansas
Florida
Georgia
Idaho
Iowa
Kansas 
Louisiana
Mississippi
Nebraska
Nevada
North Carolina
North Dakota
Oklahoma
South Carolina 
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Virginia
Wyoming

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Although card check would not overturn these right-to-work laws, its effect on workers and businesses would be devastating, even in those states. 

For example, union officials can act as the bargaining agent for ALL employees – union or not – even in right-to-work states.

That means a worker is stuck with a union contract negotiated by someone never selected as the worker’s “rep.”  Workers also give up the right to deal directly with their employer, one of the benefits of right-to-work.

Businesses don’t get a break, either. If they can’t reach a contract after 120 days of talks with the union, the federal government steps in and essentially takes over the entire business.

Businesses won’t have the ability to quickly adapt to the needs of an ever-changing economy – a clear disadvantage in this lengthy recession.

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