Right-to-work opponents, supporters cite stats, evidence 'mixed' over impact of RTW laws

More than 30 union members and supporters rallied Monday at Capaha Park against Proposition A, claiming the right-to-work (RTW) measure on the August ballot in Missouri would lead to lower wages and cost jobs.

Proponents argue RTW will boost wages, grow jobs and promote union accountability. The Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce has endorsed the measure.

Both sides cite statistics to bolster their case.

But David Yaskewich, an assistant economics professor at Southeast Missouri State University, said numerous variables make it difficult to draw any solid conclusions.

Studies provide �mixed evidence� on the impact of RTW laws, he said. In addition, right-to-work laws alone may not account for economic growth or decline, according to Yaskewich.

Proposition A, if approved Aug. 7, would adopt legislation originally passed by Missouri lawmakers in 2017.

Jobs and wages

Opponents of the measure spoke out at Monday�s rally.

Gail Kessler of Communications Workers of America said the measure, if passed, �would cost us jobs. It will force us to accept lower wages.�

Jesse Isbell, a union member from Oklahoma, worked for 36 years at a tire plant in Oklahoma City.

In 2001, Oklahoma became a right-to-work state. In 2006, the plant closed, laying off 1,400 union members and another 1,200 nonunion employees, he said.

Oklahoma�s RTW law led to lower wages and lost jobs, Isbell said. The new jobs talked about by RTW proponents never materialized, he said.

�Families in Missouri cannot afford the impact of such empty promises on their future,� he said.

Emily Martin, president of Aschinger Electric Co. in the St. Louis area, said she operates a union shop. Her workers are required to join the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) union.

She also serves as president of the St. Louis chapter of the National Electrical Contractors Association, which represents 209 contractors in eastern Missouri.

Martin said it is �good for our business� to partner with organized labor. A major benefit, she said, is she can hire trained, skilled workers who have gone through a 10,000-hour apprenticeship program paid for by workers and contractors.

�That allows us to keep up with emerging technologies,� she said.

Martin said only 8 percent of the Missouri workforce is unionized.

�It is hard to believe that, that 8 percent of the workforce is what is holding Missouri back,� she said.

Mark Baker, business representative for IBEW, based in Southern Illinois and president of the Southeast Missouri Central Labor Council, attended the rally.

Baker said after the rally passage of Prop A would lower not only the wages of unionized workers, but also those of nonunion workers whose wages are often tied to those spelled out in union contracts.

�When union workers get a raise, we collectively see nonunion members get a raise,� he said, adding higher wages are good for the economy and the tax base.

According to the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which supports right to work, labor groups do not have to represent workers who do not pay dues.

But Baker said that is not the case. He said the National Labor Relations Act passed in 1935 requires the union to represent a worker, whether a union member or not, if that worker is covered under a collective bargaining agreement.

�There is nothing wrong with advocating for a worker to have a decent living to support a family on. ... We are just trying to get by,� he said.

Recruiting industry

The Missouri Chamber and other proponents said passage of the measure would level the playing field when it comes to jobs and business investment. All of Missouri�s neighboring states, except Illinois, have RTW laws, the state chamber said.

Passage of the measure would make Missouri the 28th RTW state, the Missouri Chamber said.

The state chamber disputed the view workers are paid less in RTW states. U.S. Commerce Department data shows the average disposable income per capita in RTW states was more than $2,000 higher than in the average non-RTW state, according to the state chamber.

But opponents of the RTW measure said workers, on average, make $8,700 less a year. That figure is based on U.S. Census Bureau and Department of Labor data, they said.

Southeast�s Yaskewich said such data can be misleading if the only variable considered is whether a state has a RTW law.

The state chamber said from 2001 to 2016, employment increased by 27 percent in RTW states compared to 15.4 percent growth in non-RTW states.

Yaskewich, however, said that such a claim cannot be made if the study does not control for other factors.

�It is a nice initial look at the data, but to base a conclusion around that in our profession, we consider that sloppy,� Yaskewich said.

John Mehner, president of the Cape Girardeau chamber, said RTW laws are important to manufacturing and wholesale distributors looking to open plants. He said one industrial recruiter indicated his clients won�t even consider locating a plant in a non-RTW state.

But Yaskewich and labor leaders said employers don�t make site decisions based solely on whether a state has a RTW law. Other factors such as a trained workforce and tax benefits are considerations, they said.

Mehner said supporters of Prop A don�t consider it an �anti-union issue.�

But Yaskewich said union workers might consider it �something that could weaken a union.� A drop in union membership would result in less revenue from dues, he said.

Most studies, he said, indicate RTW laws have little impact on union membership.

Ultimately, he said, passage of a RTW law in Missouri might be �more symbolic than anything.�

mbliss@semissourian.com

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