Missouri Right to Work Amendment (2018)
| Missouri Right to Work Amendment | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 6, 2018 | |
| Topic Labor and unions | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin State legislature |
The Missouri Right to Work Amendment was not on the ballot in Missouri as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on November 6, 2018.
The measure would have added a right-to-work law to the Missouri Constitution, mandating that no person can be required to join a labor union or pay dues to a labor union as a condition of employment.[1]
The measure would have added language to the state constitution that was almost verbatim with Senate Bill 19 (SB 19), signed in 2017. SB 19 was placed on the ballot as a veto referendum, titled Proposition A, after a labor-funded campaign collected signatures for the measure.
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title would have been as follows:[1]
| “ | Do you want to amend the Missouri Constitution to provide that every employee shall have the freedom to work without being forced to pay any fees to a union (labor organization) or join a union in order to gain or keep a job?[2] | ” |
Constitutional changes
- See also: Article I, Missouri Constitution
The measure would have added a Section 55 to Article I of the Missouri Constitution. The following text would have been added:[1]
Note: Hover over the text and scroll to see the full text.
1. No person shall be required as a condition or continuation of employment to:
- (1) Become, remain, or refrain from becoming a member of a labor organization;
- (2) Pay any dues, fees, assessments, or other similar charges, however denominated, of any kind or amount to a labor organization; or
- (3) In lieu of the payments listed under subdivision (2) of this subsection, pay to any charity or other third party any amount equivalent to, or on a pro rata basis, any dues, fees, assessments, or other charges required of members of a labor organization.
2. Any agreement, understanding, or practice, written or oral, implied or express, between any labor organization and employer that violates the rights of employees as guaranteed under this section is unlawful, null and void, and of no legal effect.
3. (1) Any person injured as a result of any violation or threatened violation of this section shall be entitled to injunctive relief against any and all violators or persons threatening violations.
- (2) Any person injured as a result of any violation or threatened violation of this section may recover any and all damages of any character resulting from such violation or threatened violation, including costs and reasonable attorney’s fees. Such remedies shall be independent of and in addition to the other penalties and remedies prescribed under this section.
4. The prosecuting attorney or circuit attorney with jurisdiction over the location where a violation or threatened violation of this section occurs or the attorney general of this state shall investigate complaints of violation or threatened violation of this section, prosecute any person violating this section, and use all means at his or her command to ensure the effective enforcement of this section.
5. This section shall not apply:
- (1) To employers and employees covered by the federal Railway Labor Act;
- (2) To federal employers and employees;
- (3) To employers and employees on exclusive federal enclaves;
- (4) Where this section conflicts with or is preempted by federal law; or
- (5) To any agreement between an employer and a labor organization entered into before the effective date of this section, but shall apply to any such agreement upon its renewal, extension, amendment, or modification in any respect after the effective date of this section
6. As used in this section, the following terms shall mean:
- (1) "Employer", any individual, organization, partnership, state agency, political subdivision, corporation, or other legal entity that employs or has employed one or more individuals performing services for the entity within this state;
- (2) "Labor organization", any organization of any kind, agency, employee representation committee, or union that exists for the purpose, in whole or in part, of dealing with employers concerning wages, rates of pay, hours of work, other conditions of employment, or other forms of compensation.[2]
Background
Right-to-work in other states
- See also: Right-to-work state laws
As of May 2018, 27 states had right-to-work laws in place. The majority of right-to-work laws were passed by states between 1944 and 1958, although some were passed after 2010. Missouri would be the 28th state if right-to-work is enacted.[3]
Taft-Hartley Act
- See also: Taft-Hartley Act
Congress passed the Taft-Hartley Act in 1947, which allowed individual states to enact right-to-work laws. Between 1935 and 1947, the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), also known as the Wagner Act, permitted collective bargaining agreements in all states between employers and unions that required all employees at a workplace to pay dues to the union. These agreements were known as union security agreements. As of 2017, the NLRA continues to permit union security agreements, although the Taft-Hartley Act allows states to forbid union security agreements via right-to-work laws. President Harry S. Truman (D) vetoed the Taft-Hartley Act, but the House of Representatives and Senate overrode his veto.[4]
In NLRB v. General Motors Corporation of 1967, the Supreme Court ruled that an employee cannot be required to join a labor union by a union security agreement, but can be required to pay dues to the union representing the employee's workplace for collective bargaining costs.[5]
Amendment 23
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Missouri Amendment 23, an initiated constitutional amendment, was on the ballot in 1978. The measure would have added language to the state constitution that said that an individual has a right to work regardless of membership or non-membership in a labor organization. Voters defeated the ballot initiative 60.02 to 39.98 percent.[6]
2015 and 2016
In 2015, Gov. Jay Nixon (D) vetoed a right-to-work bill that the state legislature passed. He explained his veto, saying, "For generations, the ability of workers to join together and bargain collectively for fair wages, and training has lifted the living standards of families everywhere both union and non-union."[7]
Following the general election on November 8, 2016, Republicans remained in control of both chambers of the state legislature and Eric Greitens (R) defeated Chris Koster (D) to become governor. The change in partisan control of the governorship made Missouri a Republican trifecta. The term trifecta describes a government in which a single party controls both legislative chambers and the governorship.
Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO, described the 2016 gubernatorial election in Missouri as the most important in the nation because of the right-to-work issue. Democrat Chris Koster opposed right-to-work on the campaign trail, stating, "I’m opposed to using government regulations to lower the wages of Missourians. Eric’s desire to roll back collective bargaining rights in Missouri is inconsistent with the goal of building a strong middle class." Gov. Greitens said he would sign a right-to-work law during his campaign. He responded to Koster's criticism of him on the issue, saying, "Eric absolutely believes right-to-work is a necessary step to create good-paying jobs, and he will sign it as governor."[8][9][10]
Speaker of the House Todd Richardson (R-152) and Senate President Pro Tempore Ron Richard (R-32) said passing right-to-work legislation would be a priority in 2017.[11] The following table show's partisan control of the state House, state Senate, and governor's office since 1992.
Missouri Party Control: 1992-2025
Eight years of Democratic trifectas • Thirteen years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| Senate | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| House | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
Senate Bill 19
On December 1, 2016, Senate Bill 19 was filed by Sen. Dan Brown (R-16). The Missouri Senate approved the legislation on January 26, 2017. The chamber’s nine Democrats, along with three Republicans, voted against the bill. On February 2, 2017, the Missouri House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 19, with 100 representatives approving and 59 disapproving the bill. Rep. Courtney Curtis (D-73) was the only Democrat in either chamber to support the bill.[12] Rep. Doug Beck (D-92) attempted to change the bill into a legislative referral, which voters would have addressed on November 6, 2018. His amendment failed 91 to 64. Rep. Rory Rowland (D-29) sought to insert a sunset clause of five years into the bill, which would have required Senate Bill 19 be re-approved and signed every five years. The amendment failed 100 to 59. On February 2, 2017, the bill was delivered to the governor.[13]
Gov. Eric Greitens (R) signed Senate Bill 19 on February 6, 2017. He said, "This is about more jobs - Missourians are ready to work, and now our state is open for business!"[14]
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Proposition A (2018)
Missouri AFL-CIO president Mike Louis and Missouri NAACP president Rod Chapel filed a veto referendum at the secretary of state's office on February 6, 2017. The referendum was designed to overturn Senate Bill 19.[15] Signatures were filed for the referendum on August 18, 2017.[16][17] The veto referendum was certified for the ballot as Proposition A. Voters will decide Proposition A on November 6, 2018.
A "yes" vote on Proposition A was to uphold the contested legislation, Senate Bill 19, which was designed to mandate that no person can be required to join a labor union or pay dues to a labor union as a condition of employment.
Union membership in Missouri
Economists B.T. Hirsch and David Macpherson, along with Urban Institute senior researcher Wayne Vroman, maintain a database on estimated union membership of nonagricultural wage workers. Hirsch, Macpherson, and Vroman use the same method to calculate state union membership estimates as the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics uses to calculate national estimates, except that agricultural workers are excluded.[18]
Hirsch, Macpherson, and Vroman's data shows that union membership of nonagricultural wage workers had decreased between 1976 and 2016 in Missouri and the total United States. In 1976, union membership was estimated at 23.4 percent in Missouri. In 2016, union membership was estimated at 9.7 percent in Missouri, a decrease of 58.6 percent from 40 years earlier.[19]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Amending the Missouri Constitution
In Missouri, a constitutional amendment must be passed by a simple majority vote in each house of the Missouri State Legislature during one legislative session.
Rep. Rick Brattin (R-55) introduced the amendment into the Missouri State Legislature as House Joint Resolution 79 (HJR 79) on January 23, 2018.[20]
On May 14, 2018, the Missouri House of Representatives voted to pass HJR 79 in a vote of 93 to 54 with 14 members absent. As there were two vacancies in the state House, 81 votes were needed to pass the amendment. One Democrat joined Republicans to support HJR 79, while 15 Republicans joined Democrats to oppose HJR 79.[20]
The Missouri State Senate did not vote on the amendment before the legislative session ended on May 18, 2018.
| Vote in the Missouri House of Representatives | |||
| Requirement: Simple majority vote of all members in each chamber | |||
Number of yes votes required: 81  | |||
| Yes | No | Not voting | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 93 | 54 | 14 |
| Total percent | 57.76% | 33.54% | 8.70% |
| Democrat | 1 | 39 | 7 |
| Republican | 92 | 15 | 7 |
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Missouri House of Representatives, "House Joint Resolution 79," accessed May 15, 2018
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source. Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ National Right to Work Committee, "State Right to Work Timeline," accessed November 10, 2015
- ↑ Congressional Research Service, Right to Work Laws: Legislative Background and Empirical Research," January 6, 2014
- ↑ Cornell University Law School, "NLRB v. General Motors Corporation," accessed April 25, 2017
- ↑ Chillicothe Constitution Tribune, "Proposed Amendments to the Constitution of Missouri," October 18, 1978
- ↑ St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "Nixon vetoes controversial 'right-to-work' legislation," June 4, 2015
- ↑ St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "Right-to-work debate puts national spotlight on Missouri governor's race," August 29, 2016
- ↑ St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "Governor-elect Greitens likely to make Missouri a right-to-work state," November 9, 2016
- ↑ Kansas City Business Journal, "Missouri right-to-work bill rises again, this time with a champion," December 2, 2016
- ↑ KMOV, "Right to work priority for Missouri GOP lawmakers, Greitens," November 10, 2016
- ↑ St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "Right-to-work law advances in Missouri House," January 18, 2017
- ↑ Missouri State Senate, "Senate Bill No. 19," accessed February 8, 2017
- ↑ St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens signs 'right-to-work' into law," February 6, 2017
- ↑ Kansas City Star, "Gov. Eric Greitens signs Missouri right-to-work bill, but unions file referendum to overturn it," February 6, 2017
- ↑ The Missouri Times, "As GOP launches attacks, labor to present RTW ballot signatures August 18th," August 4, 2017
- ↑ St. Louis Public Radio, "Unions plan to turn in 300K signatures, likely putting Missouri’s ‘right-to-work’ law in limbo," August 9, 2017
- ↑ Hirsch, Barry T., David A. Macpherson, and Wayne G. Vroman. "Estimates of Union Density by State." Monthly Labor Review 124, 7. (2001): 51-55.
- ↑ Georgia State University, "Union Density Estimates by State, 1964-2016," accessed December 12, 2017
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 Missouri House of Representatives, "HJR 79 Overview," accessed May 15, 2018
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