Right-to-Work Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

West Virginia Supreme Court Upholds 'Right-To-Work' Law

The West Virginia Supreme Court has upheld a so-called right-to-work law and handed a defeat to labor unions which had sought to preserve workers’ union dues.

In an opinion released Tuesday, the justices granted summary judgment to the state and overturned a February 2019 ruling by a lower court judge who had sided with the unions.

Kanawha County Circuit Judge Jennifer Bailey had struck down as unconstitutional some provisions of the 2016 law, which authorized union employees to stop paying dues and fees or, in lieu of that, make payments to a charity or third party.

After the Republican-led Legislature crafted the bill, then-Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, a Democrat, vetoed it and lawmakers overrode the veto the next day, making West Virginia the 26th “right-to-work” state.

The state chapter of the AFL-CIO and other unions then filed a lawsuit, maintaining the law illegally took their assets since they still have to represent all employees in a union shop, including those that the law would allow to stop paying union dues.

The new law would have required unions and union officials “to work, to supply their valuable expertise, and to provide expensive services for nothing,” Bailey wrote.

But the state Supreme Court ruled the law “does not violate constitutional rights of association, property, or liberty.”

Proponents said the law would attract businesses and give workers more freedom over their ties to unions. Democrats argued the law was solely meant to undercut unions for political reasons, allowing workers to benefit from union representation without paying dues. Democrats also argued the economic benefits were unproven and wages would drop.

“This is a major victory for worker choice,” state Attorney General Patrick Morrisey said in a statement Tuesday. “This is not a pro-union or anti-union decision. It is a ruling that will protect workers, give them a greater voice and make unions stronger in the end.”

W.Va. Judge Strikes Down Key Portions of So-Called Right-to-Work Law

A judge on Wednesday sided with labor unions in striking down key portions of West Virginia’s so-called right-to-work law, including those that allowed workers to stop paying union dues.

Kanawha County Circuit Judge Jennifer Bailey made the ruling in a lawsuit filed by the state chapter of the AFL-CIO and other unions. The judge said some provisions of the 2016 law violated the state constitution.

Labor unions maintained the law illegally took their assets since they still have to represent all employees in a union shop, including those that the law would allow to stop paying union dues.

Bailey struck down provisions that would authorize union employees to stop paying dues and fees or, in lieu of that, make payments to a charity or third party.

The new law would have required unions and union officials “to work, to supply their valuable expertise, and to provide expensive services for nothing,” Bailey wrote.

Proponents said it would attract businesses and give workers more freedom over their ties to unions. Democrats said the law was solely meant to undercut unions for political reasons, allowing workers to benefit from union representation without paying dues. Democrats also argued the economic benefits were unproven and wages would drop.

The law “was nothing more than an attack on our wages, benefits and working conditions,” Teamsters General Secretary Ken Hall said in a statement.

West Virginia AFL-CIO President Josh Sword said Bailey “was right-on with her ruling. We entered into this lengthy legal challenge nearly three years ago because we knew the law violated of the rights of West Virginia workers — and we simply won’t stand for that.”

Curtis Johnson, a spokesman for West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, said Morrisey’s office is reviewing the circuit court’s decision.

West Virginia's Top Court Clears 'Right-to-Work' Law

West Virginia’s highest court ruled Friday that a judge made a mistake blocking the state’s “right-to-work” law from taking effect after it was passed last year while the court challenge against it continued.

The Supreme Court, divided 3-2, concluded the unions opposing the law “failed to show a likelihood of success” in challenging its constitutionality.

They didn’t identify any federal or state appellate court that struck down such a law based on similar challenges in more than 70 years, Justice Menis Ketchum wrote. He noted that similar laws have been enacted in 27 other states.

The state AFL-CIO and other unions argued the law constitutes illegally taking union assets since they still have to represent all employees in a union shop, including those that the law would allow to stop paying union dues. They also asserted that it violated their rights to freedom of association and their liberty interests.

Kanawha County Circuit Judge Jennifer Bailey granted the preliminary injunction, saying enforcement could cause irreparable harm to unions and workers until the legal questions are resolved.

The law doesn’t affect existing contracts, only future agreements the union and employers have not yet negotiated or accepted, Ketchum wrote. “The unions therefore have no protected property right that the Legislature has taken,” he wrote.

In a concurring opinion, Justice Allen Loughry wrote that issuing the injunction “was not merely imprudent, but profoundly legally incorrect.” The Taft-Hartley Act expressly allows states to prohibit compulsory union membership or dues remittance, and the U.S. Supreme Court “has essentially spoken on all critical aspects of this issue,” he wrote.

The law was passed in early 2016 by the Legislature’s majority Republicans. They contended it would attract businesses and give workers freedom by prohibiting companies from requiring employees to pay union dues as a condition of employment.

Democrats argued the measure solely aimed to undermine unions for political reasons, allowing workers to benefit from union representation without paying dues. Democrats also argued the economic benefits were unproven and wages would drop.

Justice Robin Jean Davis dissented in an opinion that wasn’t available from the court Friday. Justice Margaret Workman agreed in part and dissented in part in an opinion that also was not immediately available.

Senate Votes to Override Right to Work Fix

Senators have voted to override Governor Jim Justice’s veto of Senate Bill 330.

The bill was an attempt to clarify some language in the state’s Right to Work law which was approved by lawmakers in the 2016 session.

After its passage, the law was challenged in court and was recently ruled unconstitutional by a Kanawha County judge.

Justice noted in his veto message that lawmakers should wait for a final decision from the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals before changing the law– which is expected by late April.

“This does not interfere in anyway with the adjudication of the question of whether the legislation is somehow inconsistent with the United States Constitution or the West Virginia Constitution,” Senate Judicairy Chair Charles Trump said on the floor Thursday.

“Our action in the bill that we passed, Senate Bill 330, was just to take out the part of the statute that the court found to be vague or ambiguous.”

It takes only a simple majority vote to override a gubernatorial veto. Senators voted 21 to 12 Thursday to do so.

It will also take a vote in the House of Delegates for the bill to become law without the governor’s signature.

Justice Vetoes Right-to-Work Amendment, Cites Court Case

Gov. Jim Justice has vetoed legislation intended to clarify the West Virginia right-to-work law enacted last year, saying it’s currently before the state’s top court and that process shouldn’t be interfered with.

The bill passed by the Republican-controlled Legislature would remove provisions from the law enacted last year that would seem to exempt building and construction trade unions.

Enforcement has been blocked by a court injunction in a lawsuit brought by unions.

They maintain the law illegally takes their assets since they still have to represent all employees in a union shop including those that the law would allow to stop paying union dues.

The Democratic governor says any amendment to the statute before the state’s Supreme Court “has finally determined its constitutionality is imprudent and contrary to public policy.”

Bill Clarifying Right-to-Work Law Passes in House

A bill that sparked some debate in the Senate has made its way to the House of Delegates. It would make changes to the West Virginia Workplace Freedom Act, or the state’s right-to-work law.

The debate over whether West Virginia should be the 26^th Right-to-Work state began during last year’s Legislative session.

Right-to-work laws make it illegal to require a worker in a union shop to pay union dues and fees if he or she is not a member.

Union’s argue that worker, however, is still benefiting from the contract negotiations the union pays for, without contributing to the cost.

Last year’s right-to-work bill brought on heated debates in both chambers, but ultimately passed. The legislation was vetoed by then-Governor Earl Ray Tomblin, but both the House and Senate overrode the veto and the bill became law.

Right-to-Work was challenged in court by the West Virginia AFL-CIO, the state’s largest workers’ union. Last month, a Kanawha County Judge deemed the right-to-work bill unconstitutional and the decision could end up in the state’s Supreme Court.

Senate Bill 330, which was on third reading in the House Thursday, seeks to clean up the language the judge saw as unconstitutional.

Delegate Scott Brewer, a Democrat from Mason County and a former construction worker, spoke in opposition to the bill.

“Why does this body want to jeopardize the ability of our industry partners, private business, to shake hands with private organizations and enter into an agreement that provides everything we need for these industries? Senate Bill 330 simply requires unions and labor organizations to spend their resources on people that won’t pay. That’s what this is about; spend your resources on people that will not pay,” Brewer explained.

Brewer was the only member of the body to speak to the bill, however the vote was close. It passed 52 to 48 and now heads back to the Senate.

Members of the House quickly approved 12 additional bills during their floor session on Thursday. One of those was House Bill 2522. It would enter West Virginia into an agreement with other states to allow nurses to practice across state lines without having to get multiple licenses. The compact includes both registered nurses and licensed practical nurses.

Delegate Jordan Hill, a Republican from Nicholas County, works in the Human Resources department for his local hospital, and he spoke in favor of the bill.

“I often find myself hiring numerous travel nurses at our local hospital monthly to fill vacancies that we cannot fill with West Virginia nurses, because of our shortage in the Mountain State,” Hill explained, “The current system of duplicative licensure and nurses practicing in multiple states is cumbersome and redundant for both nurses and states. We have an opportunity right now to step up to the plate and improve rural West Virginia and across the state.”

In the House’s Judiciary Committee, representatives of licensed practical nurses expressed concerns over the nurse licensure compact, arguing it wouldn’t resolve the state’s nursing shortage but allow LPNs from out-of-state to take jobs from West Virginians.

Despite concerns House Bill 2522 passed out of the chamber on a unanimous vote.