Indiana Governor Signs a Law Creating a ‘Right to Work’
State
Published: February 1, 2012 - New York Times
Gov. Mitch
Daniels of Indiana, who had once said that he did not wish to add a “right
to work” provision to the state’s labor laws, signed a bill on Wednesday doing
just that.
The legislation, which bars union contracts from
requiring non-union members to pay fees for representation, makes Indiana the
first state in more than a decade to enact right to work legislation and the
only one in the Midwestern manufacturing belt to have such a law.
Mr. Daniels, a Republican who is prevented by term
limits from seeking re-election this year, signed the measure
only hours after it cleared the Republican-held State Senate — an unusually
speedy journey through the Statehouse aimed, many said, at ending what had
become a rancorous, partisan fight before the national spotlight of the Super
Bowl arrives in Indianapolis on Sunday. The bill, which takes effect
immediately, makes Indiana the 23rd state in the nation with such a law.
It remained uncertain whether final approval of the
bill would prevent union protests at events related to the Super Bowl, and on
Wednesday thousands of union members and supporters marched, chanting in
protest, from the Statehouse to Lucas Oil Stadium, the
site of the football game.
“Seven years of evidence and experience ultimately
demonstrated that Indiana did need a right to work law to capture jobs for
which, despite our highly rated business climate, we are not currently being
considered,” Mr. Daniels said in a statement that his office released after he
signed the bill. For a month, the issue had loomed over Indianapolis, and
hundreds of union members crowded, day after day, into the Statehouse halls.
Democrats, who hold minorities in both legislative chambers, had refused at
times to go to the House floor, hoping to block a vote on the matter, which they
argued would weaken unions and lower pay and wages for workers at private-sector
companies. Even on Wednesday, when it was clear that passage was certain,
tensions were high. As senators spoke on both sides, protesters in the halls
chanted loudly and a few people inside the chamber called out objections during
the proceedings. In the end, senators voted 28 to 22 in favor of the measure,
which was approved last week by the House.
Republican leaders defended the unusually swift
passage of the measure, noting what they described as “overt threats” by union
members and others about intentions to raise the right to work issue during the
Super Bowl.
“We sized up early on that passage prior to the Super
Bowl would be appropriate,” Brian Bosma, the speaker of the House, said
Wednesday, adding that the law enforcement authorities were prepared for any
efforts to disrupt the city’s first Super Bowl. “That would be extremely
unfortunate,” he said, “and, I think, tremendously unpopular.”
For their part, union leaders said the Republicans had
overblown the union’s intentions on the football game.
“They’re trying to make working men and women look
like thugs, like we’re going to ruin an event,” said Jeff Harris, a spokesman
for the Indiana A.F.L.-C.I.O., who added that their expectation for the Super
Bowl was to have “a presence but an informational presence,” handing out
leaflets on the issue.