Home » Senate passes 'right-to-work' bill by narrow vote

Senate passes 'right-to-work' bill by narrow vote

February 1, 2012

KEYWORDS legislation / Indiana Senate / Gov. Mitch Daniels / Indiana Governor / Employment / Indiana General Assembly / Government / neglect

The Indiana Senate voted 28-22 in favor of House Bill 1001, which would make it illegal to require employees to pay union dues as a condition of employment.

Having already passed the House by a vote of 54-44, the bill now awaits Gov. Mitch Daniels’ signature.

Supporters of the bill have claimed that states with “right-to-work” laws are more likely to attract new businesses than those without such laws. Opponents of the bill claim right to work laws undermine unions and weaken their bargaining power. In a company where a union labor agreement exists, unions must represent worker interests regardless of whether those workers pay union dues.

With Daniel’s signature, Indiana will become the 23rd state with a right to work law.

Jenny Montgomery joined the Indiana Lawyer staff in 2011. She covers law schools, bar associations, pro bono and social justice issues. She also writes about what lawyers do in their spare time.

A freelance writer since 2001, Montgomery has written for Indianapolis magazines and was part of small pool of freelancers for a California-based company that provides health and wellness articles for websites nationwide. Montgomery also covered arts and culture for the Indianapolis office of The Associated Press.

She received several statewide awards for reporting while studying journalism at Indiana University Purdue University – Indianapolis, where she was the editor of the college newspaper. While a student at IUPUI, she studied war reporting during an intensive two-week program in Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Montgomery lives just east of downtown Indianapolis, with her husband and pets. A fitness buff, Montgomery is a volunteer conditioning and strategy coach for a local sports team.