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What I've Been Reading This Week: Missouri Right to Work Edition


After long last, we have some finality as to the ongoing right to work fight in Missouri.  As readers are aware, this has been a long, hard fought struggle for many years.  After Missouri Republican Governor Eric Greitens signed a right to work bill into law, unions rallied to get the matter on the ballot for voters to decide whether Missouri would become the 28th right to work state.  Upon obtaining enough signatures, the matter was placed on the ballot and moved up to an August 7th vote.  Critics of the right to work law claimed this was an attempt by Republicans to move the right to work vote from the November general election, since voter turnout in August would be lower (and potentially more Republican leaning).  Nevertheless, unions and their supporters raised nearly $16 million dollars in a get out the vote effort to rally opposition to the referendum, Proposition A, and educate voters of the "dangers" of Missouri becoming the next right to work state.  Supporters of the right to work bill struggled to raise $1 million.  

As a result, heading into this past Tuesday's vote, many expected the right to work law to be defeated.  And lo and behold, that is what happened.

Below are a couple articles that caught my eye this week.


Labor Unions Push Back With Nearly 68% Against Right to Work Law

Adam Shaw at Fox News wrote an update late Tuesday with a note that the approximately 68% vote against the right to work law was a major victory (if not a rare one) for labor unions and their supporters.  With that being said, this defeat of right to work in Missouri by a 2-1 margin has been herald by many as a turning point in the recent decline in labor unions.  While I do not know if I would call this the be all end all (in regard to a turning point), it is certainly a bright spot for labor unions and their supporters, given the downturn in union membership, growing number of right to work states, and the United States Supreme Court's recent decision in Janus.



Of course, with labor unions and their supporters winning handily, supporters of the right to work referendum were left second guessing their strategy heading into Tuesday's vote and questioning why they fell short.  The St. Louis Post-Dispatch noted that many pointed to the financial disadvantage supporters of Proposition A faced:  $16 million vs. $1 million.  With such a severe financial disadvantage, supporters of the right to work struggled to organize an effective get out the vote operation, let alone educate voters about the benefits of a statewide right to work law.  Although supporters of right to work criticized a lot of the $16 million raised as "outside" or "shadow" money that improperly came into the state to influence voters, regardless of your position on the matter, quite simply...it worked.

A recent editorial from The Kansas City Star lauded the defeat of a proposition A as a victory for labor unions and an opportunity to forge a new path going forward, but cautioned labor unions not to treat Tuesday’s results as a blank check.  Instead, the editorial encourages labor unions to focus on extolling the benefits of union membership and representation to a wider group of workers and tailoring their message on issues such as trade and tariffs to appeal to the working class.  While there is no sure fire guarantee that labor unions will be able to use the defeat of right to work in Missouri as a catalyst to expanding ranks and reestablishing influence in the workplace, this just might be the shot in the arm needed to jump start things for unions in the coming years.



Since we addressed a somewhat rosy outlook for labor unions going forward in the article above, it is only fair we do the same for the other side of the aisle here.  For those on the employer/business side of the aisle looking for some positive news after Tuesday's vote, Vauhini Vara at The Atlantic predicted that while right to work may have failed in Missouri, labor unions’ victory is likely short lived.  Namely, Vara notes that the defeat of Proposition A is merely a defensive move in so much that it only maintains the status quo and does not actually make it easier for workers to unionize.  While there is still support (widespread in some areas even) for labor unions, membership has been, and continues to remain, in decline.  Whether this victory is merely a short stop in the continued decline for labor unions is anyone's guess, but Vara provides some reasoning for employers to be optimistic,  despite the result on Tuesday.

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