Right to Work Goes to Assembly; Could Become Law This Week
By Emily Matesic Published: March 2, 2015, 4:55 pm Updated: March 3, 2015, 5:29 am
Wisconsin could become the nation’s next right to work state by the end of the week.
The proposed right to work bill is headed to the Republican-controlled Assembly after a public hearing in Madison.
The Assembly Labor Committee held a hearing Monday that was dominated by opponents of the bill, which would make it illegal for employers to require workers to join a union or pay dues as a condition of employment.
The Committee began hearing testimony at 10 o’clock Monday. Unlike last week’s Senate hearing, the committee heard from citizens and not experts on the issue first.
A full gallery listened as passionate arguments and pleas, on both sides of the right to work issue, were offered to the Assembly Labor Committee. A former teacher, who was heavily involved with her union, explained why she left and why she supports the bill.
Kristi Lacroix from Kenosha County said, “It was during that time that I saw where a lot of my money was going. It was during that time I saw I was being forced to support politics that I did not agree with, to support candidates that I did not agree with. And as an adult, as somebody with a college degree, supporting a family, I certainly believed I had a right to determine where my money went and who I was voting for and who I was supporting.”
Opponents of the bill had a different take, arguing that the right to work bill is meant to damage unions.
“In the end, this law is not about anyone’s right to work. It is about weakening unions and saddling us with the cost of representing people who don’t pay their fair share. AB61 is nothing more than another in a long line of political maneuvers by the party currently in power to weaken their opponents and rig the game,” said John Drew of Milwaukee.
Committee chairman Andre Jacque (R-De Pere) allowed Monday’s meeting to run nearly two hours longer than the cut-off time, saying he wanted everyone to be heard. That’s in contrast to public testimony before the Senate Labor Committee last week, in which comments were cut short.
The full Assembly is expected to take up the bill Thursday. Governor Scott Walker says he hopes to sign the bill into law by the end of the week.
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