Democratic
Gov. Jay Nixon vetoed a measure Thursday that would have made Missouri the 26th
right-to-work state, and it's unclear whether proponents will be able to muster
enough support in the Republican-led Legislature to override the veto.
The governor, a longtime opponent of
the effort, traveled to the Kansas City area to announce the veto among about
200 local United Auto Workers union members near a Ford assembly plant. The
bill would have barred workplace contracts that require all employees— even
those who aren't union members — to pay union fees.
"This extreme measure would take
our state backward, squeeze the middle-class, lower wages for Missouri
families, and subject businesses to criminal and unlimited civil
liability," Nixon said in a statement. "Right to work is wrong for
Missouri, it's wrong for the middle-class and it must never become the law of
the Show-Me State."
The legislation also would make
anyone "who directly or indirectly violates" its provisions subject
to misdemeanor charges punishable by up to 15 days in jail and a fine of up to
$300. Civil lawsuits also could be brought against anyone who violates, or
threatens to violate, the bill's ban on mandatory union fees in workplaces.
Nixon
slammed the bill as a "big-government overreach."
Most
of the Missouri's eight neighboring states already have right-to-work laws; the
only two that don't are Illinois and Kentucky. Republican legislators and
governors in the Midwestern states Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin all enacted
right-to-work laws in the past three years.
Supporters
in Missouri say the legislation would attract businesses and spur economic
growth, citing lawmakers' failure to pass a law as an incentive for companies
to instead expand in nearby right-to-work states. Reviews of research into the
economic effects of right-to-work laws have generally concluded that it is
difficult to isolate that provision from other policies and preferences in the
state.
"Missouri
is at an economic disadvantage that must be reversed," Republican Lt. Gov.
Peter Kinder said in a statement. "Missouri has a well-trained workforce
and great resources, but we have been told time and again by site-selection
consultants that companies pass over non-right-to-work states, no matter their
qualifications."
Others
tout the measure as a matter of fairness for workers who now can be forced to
pay fees even if they don't want to join a union.
Critics
argue it would weaken unions by creating a free-rider system and could lead to
lower wages.
"If
enough members opt out of paying union dues, they're able to basically get the
benefits of belonging to the union for free," said Jason Starr, 39, a team
leader at Ford's Kansas City Assembly Plant. He said that "would
essentially weaken the ability of the union to function."
This
year marks the first that Missouri legislators were able to foster enough
support to send a bill to the governor, and it came at a cost. The Legislature
effectively shut down the last week of session after some GOP senators forced a
vote on the measure, and Democrats in response filibustered for days. Only one
other bill was passed in the Senate.
Even
with a record number of Republicans in the Missouri House and a near-record in
the Senate, the bill's original passage still fell short of the two-thirds
majority vote that would be needed in both chambers to overturn Nixon's veto.
The GOP was split, with some members joining Democrats in opposition. Senate
President Pro Tem Tom Dempsey, the top Republican in that chamber, was among
those who voted against right to work.
While
bill sponsor Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Springfield, said in a statement that he's
"optimistic" fellow representatives will join him in an attempt to
override the veto, House Minority Leader Jake Hummel of St. Louis said
Democrats are "confident" such efforts would fail.
The measure passed 17 votes short of
what's needed to override a veto in the House.
Legislators are to reconvene in
September to consider overriding vetoes
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