Kinder Says Right to Work Will Go to Ballot

Date Posted: August 30, 2013

Posted In: News, Workforce,

From the St. Louis Beacon:

by Jason Rosenblum, Beacon Staff

Between three terms in the Missouri Senate and over two terms as lieutenant governor, it’s fair to say that Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder knows how the upper chamber of the Missouri General Assembly operates.

That may be why Kinder’s declaration about “right to work’s” legislative prospects grabbed so much attention. At a conference of the American Legislative Exchange Council in Chicago, the Associated Press quoted the Republican: “I believe we will pass right-to-work next year and bypass (Gov. Jay Nixon) entirely by putting it on the referendum ballot for voters.”

“Right to work,” of course, is the shorthand supporters use to describe laws barring unions and employers from requiring workers to pay union dues if a majority vote to organize. Proponents say that companies are more attracted to states that adopt the policy.

Detractors sometimes call the proposal “right to work for less,” arguing that the goal of “right to work” is breaking organized labor’s clout. They also say it would allow “freeloaders” to get the benefits of union representation without paying for it.

Kinder’s remarks were somewhat surprising as they defy conventional wisdom. Even though Republicans have supermajorities in the Missouri House and the Senate, most analysts assume that any right to work proposal would have difficulty getting out of the Missouri Senate.