Labor unions help protect the rights of workers and ensure they have a voice in company management. In 2019, 7.1 million employees in the public sector and 7.5 million workers in the private sector - or nearly 12% of all American workers - belonged to a union. Union membership has been declining for many years due to globalization and other factors. We now have the lowest percentage of unionized workers since the 1930s. Union membership has also suffered from the enactment of “right-to-work” laws that have been passed by 28 states. Contrary to what its name implies, right-to work laws do not guarantee workers a right to work. Rather, these laws make it illegal to require employees to join a union, and allow union workers to opt out of paying union dues.

Labor advocates claim the real purpose of right to work laws is to tilt the balance toward big corporations and further rig the system at the expense of working families. These laws make it harder for working people to form unions and collectively bargain for better wages, benefits and working conditions. Workers in states where right-to-laws have been passed are paid substantially less than in states without these laws. Advocates claim corporations routinely intimidate, harass, coerce and even fire workers who try to form unions and bargain for economic well-being, thereby contributing to the decline of our middle class.

Pending Legislation: S.420 - Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2021 (passed House)
Sponsor: Rep. Bobby Scott (VA)
Status: Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
Chair: Sen. Patty Murray (WA)