Union Bosses Press for Court-Imposed Bailout

Union bosses in Indiana are pressing for a judicially imposed bailout, arguing that the state's new Right to Work Law will reduce revenues to the union since membership is no longer compulsory.  The LibertyLawSite looks at the lawsuit and the impact the law has had on job creation in the state:   Amidst a series of setbacks at both the ballot box and the court house, the fate of the compulsory union movement may depend in large measure on the outcome of two lawsuits currently pending in Indiana.  In early 2012, Governor Mitch Daniels signed into law a bill that made Indiana the nation’s twenty-third right-to-work state.  Unions have filed two challenges to that law, one each in state and federal court.  The outcome of those lawsuits will help to determine whether Indiana remains a right-to-work state and whether other states follow Indiana’s lead. In its first few months of operation, the right-to-work law has, by almost any measure, helped to attract new businesses to Indiana.  Indiana has only 2.2 percent of the nation’s population.  In April, the first full month after the law took effect, more than one in eight jobs created around the country were created in Indiana – more than in states several times the size of Indiana.  According to the state’s economic development arm, almost fifty out-of-state companies cited the right-to-work law as one reason that they were considering opening a location in Indiana.

Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority's Union Only PLA Squashed

Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority's Union Only PLA Squashed

From Virginia State Senator Mark D. Obenshain: Big Labor must be reeling after the one-two punch they just received-first they were pummeled in Wisconsin and now organized labor has beat a major retreat here in Virginia. On Wednesday, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) finally took Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) off the table for the Dulles Rail project, voting 11-1 to scrap PLA incentives for bidders. But let's not mince words: these weren't just run-of-the mill "incentives"; they were a bid scoring bonus that would have effectively made the project union-only, locking out Virginia's non-unionized contractors. Virginia is a Right to Work state with a 96% non-union workforce. The Project Labor Agreement that MWAA wanted would have run up costs and limited competition, to the great disadvantage of Virginia companies and Virginia workers. Earlier this year, I patroned SB 242, legislation prohibiting state agencies and recipients of state assistance from mandating PLAs for Virginia and Virginia-assisted construction projects. The bill passed both chambers and has been signed by Governor McDonnell.

Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority's Union Only PLA Squashed

Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority's Union Only PLA Squashed

From Virginia State Senator Mark D. Obenshain: Big Labor must be reeling after the one-two punch they just received-first they were pummeled in Wisconsin and now organized labor has beat a major retreat here in Virginia. On Wednesday, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) finally took Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) off the table for the Dulles Rail project, voting 11-1 to scrap PLA incentives for bidders. But let's not mince words: these weren't just run-of-the mill "incentives"; they were a bid scoring bonus that would have effectively made the project union-only, locking out Virginia's non-unionized contractors. Virginia is a Right to Work state with a 96% non-union workforce. The Project Labor Agreement that MWAA wanted would have run up costs and limited competition, to the great disadvantage of Virginia companies and Virginia workers. Earlier this year, I patroned SB 242, legislation prohibiting state agencies and recipients of state assistance from mandating PLAs for Virginia and Virginia-assisted construction projects. The bill passed both chambers and has been signed by Governor McDonnell.